The war in Ukraine continues to develop complicatedly (Illustration photo: Skynews).
Ukraine tries to counterattack Avdiivka, Russia enters Pervomaiskoe
Russian units continue to surround Avdiivka, Rybar reported. According to Ukrainian sources, Moscow forces have advanced to Pervomaiskoe, south of Avdiivka and north to Ocheretino, but the exact configuration in the area is still unknown.
Fierce fighting took place in the area of the coal and chemical plant, Kiev forces tried to counterattack Russian positions with tanks but ran into minefields and were blown up.
Meanwhile, the RVvoenkory channel said, "east of Pervomaiskoe, Russian forces advanced along Voroshilov Street and Volna Garden in an area up to 1km wide and 440m deep."
From the northern outskirts of Izmailovsky, small groups of Russian infantry continued to attack along the Pershotravneva road.
The Ukrainian General Staff reported 15 Russian attacks near Pervomaiskoe and Nevelsky.
Map of the Ukrainian war in Avdiivka as of January 8. Russia controls the brown part, the red arrows show the direction of their attack, the blue arrows are the direction of Ukraine's counterattack (Photo: Rybar).
Passing Marinka, Russia opens the way to Kurakhovo
Rybar channel reported that in the south of Donetsk, fierce fighting for Novomikhailovka and Pobeda continued. The complete control of Marinka city opened the way for Russia to advance directly to Kurakhovo.
The village of Georgievka was blocking the Russian army's path, but with strong attacks, the Mosocw forces gained a foothold on the territory of St. George's Church, advancing about 300 meters forward.
Ukraine's Petrenko channel reported that west of Marinka, Kiev forces used FPV drones to attack a Russian stronghold southeast of Vrozhay garden. Russia is trying to improve its tactical position around Vrozhai on the road to Georgievka.
Meanwhile, the RVvoenkory channel confirmed that after taking control of Marinka, Russia did not stop, continuing to attack the summer cottages towards Georgievka on the way to Kurakhovo and gained about 1.5 square kilometers. The Ukrainian Petrenko channel admitted that "our situation in Kurakhovo has worsened".
The General Staff of Ukraine reported that in Marinka, Russia carried out three attacks on the Marinka and Novomikhailovka areas.
Map of the Ukrainian war in Marinka as of January 8. Russia controls the brown area, the arrows show the direction of their attack, and the dark brown areas are where Moscow forces have just taken control (Photo: RVvoenkory).
Fierce fighting on all fronts
At Starobel, the previous configuration remained intact. Near Kupyansk, the Russians attacked the positions of the Ukrainian formations in Sinkovka and fought battles for positions on the line Zagoruykovka - Timkovka - Ivanovka - Kislovka.
In the direction of Soledar, the Russians attacked the positions of the Ukrainian formations north and south of Bogdanovka. On the southern flank of Bakhmut, fierce fighting took place on the Kleshchiivka - Andriivka line. The Ukrainian command is sending additional forces to this location, trying to hold back the enemy's onslaught.
In the Orekhov area, fighting near Rabotino continued unabated: to the west of the settlement, Russia attacked enemy positions, capturing several strongholds. In the Verbovoe area, due to bad weather, the sides used UAVs and artillery. At the same time, at night, Ukrainian saboteurs carried out attacks, which were promptly stopped by Russia.
In the Kherson direction, the situation remained the same: in Krynki, although the Ukrainian formations were suffering heavy losses, they continued to mobilize manpower to the left bank of the Dnieper. On the islands, mortar fire was taking place.
On the right bank of the river, four enemy air defense systems were destroyed over the past week, which made the job of the Russian air force easier.
ISW: Russian troops make slight advances in Donetsk and Verbovoy regions
The US-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW) confirmed that Russia has made advances in the Donetsk and Verbovoy regions, while fighting for positions continues along the entire front line, Ukrainska Pravda reported.
Russian forces have advanced slightly west of Donetsk, analysts say. Geolocation footage released on January 7 shows Russian troops approaching the eastern suburb of Georgievka (6km west of Donetsk).
Russian military bloggers claim that Russian forces have captured two churches in Georgievka and advanced 300m, while also reaching the opposite bank of the Osikova River, just outside the city of Donetsk.
Heavy fighting continued in the Marinka and Georgievka areas and southwest of Donetsk at Novomikhailovka and Pobeda.
Russian military advances were also confirmed after an attack in Zaporizhia. Geolocation footage released on January 8 showed Russia making some progress in Verbovoy.
Russian and Ukrainian sources say fighting for positions continues near Robotino, west of Verbovoy and north of Novoprokopovka.
A Russian military blogger said that because the Zaporizhia direction was frozen, Russian forces could only reach the position using tracked armored vehicles. Vladimir Rogov, a Russian-appointed official in the Zaporizhia region, said that bad weather conditions were preventing Moscow and Kiev forces from using UAVs to adjust artillery fire.
Map of the Ukrainian war in Rabotino and Verbovoy as of January 8. In which, Russia controls the pink area, the yellow areas are where they gained control, the blue areas are controlled by Ukraine after the counter-offensive (Photo: ISW).
Ukraine: Russian troops are attacking the left bank of the Dnieper River
Ukrainska Pravda reported that the Ukrainian General Staff reported that on January 8, 55 clashes took place, Russia launched 55 missiles and conducted 16 airstrikes, and carried out 16 attacks with multiple rocket launchers.
The report reads: "The enemy did not abandon the intention of driving our units away from the bridgehead on the left bank of the Dnieper. Indeed, during the day they carried out nine unsuccessful attacks, the Ukrainians continued to hold their positions and inflicted significant losses on Russia."
The General Staff of Ukraine confirmed that during the day, defense forces repelled most of the enemy's attacks in Sinkovka, Liman, Bakhmut, Avdiivka, Marinka and Zaporizhia.
Russia launches massive attack with UAVs and missiles on Ukraine
Casualties and damage to civilian infrastructure were reported in the Zaporizhia, Khmelnytskyi, Dnipropetrovsk and Kharkov regions.
The Russian Air Force reported that "important infrastructure facilities, as well as industrial, civilian and military facilities, were attacked." Russia launched a total of 59 missiles and drones into Ukraine during the night and morning. Ukrainian air defenses shot down 18 cruise missiles and eight Shahed-136/131 drones.
According to the Ukrainian Air Force, in addition to cruise missiles, Russia also used air-launched missiles, ballistic missiles and guided air defense missiles. However, according to the report, not all of the Russian missiles that were not shot down were able to reach their targets.
Russian Air Force Tu-95 strategic bomber (Photo: Telegram).
Russia maintains 19,000 troops on Ukraine's northern border
Kyiv Independent reported that on January 8, the spokesman for the northern Ukrainian forces, Yurii Povkh, said that Russia maintains a force of 19,000 soldiers on the border, adjacent to the Sumy and Chernihiv provinces of Ukraine.
However, Mr. Povkh said that this number "has not changed for several months, so there is no need to discuss signs that the enemy is forming any attack groups."
He also said such a force could be used to protect the border but could not penetrate Ukraine's defenses.
Russian plane accidentally drops bomb on Moscow-controlled Luhansk region
AP reported that Leonid Pasechnik, the head of the Moscow-appointed government, said that in the Luhansk region of eastern Ukraine, a Russian fighter jet accidentally dropped a bomb on the town of Rubizhne. He said the FAB-250 bomb caused no injuries.
The incident came just six days after another Russian plane accidentally dropped a bomb on the village of Petropavlovka in the Belgorod region.
Britain risks 'falling behind' in military support for Kiev
Former UK defence secretary Ben Wallace has warned his successor, Grant Shapps, that Britain risks “falling behind” in providing military support to Kiev because ministers have yet to announce an aid budget for 2024-2025, the Guardian reported.
The former minister told parliament he had formally requested £2.6bn ($3.32bn) in funding for Kiev in June before he left government, but no announcement has been made since.
“Planners in the Ministry of Defence need time, as do the Ukrainians, to get used to that. If we don’t make an announcement soon, we will fall behind many of our European colleagues who have already passed on our support,” Mr Wallace told MPs.
In response, Mr Shapps praised his predecessor's work but refused to give a figure, instead saying Mr Wallace "will not be disappointed and he will not have to wait too long".
F-16 delivery to Kiev gets new timeline
A timeline has been set for the expected delivery of at least some F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, Newsweek reports.
The first delivery of six US-made planes, originally scheduled for early 2024 when announced in August, has been delayed by about six months, Danish newspaper Berlingske reported on Saturday.
Ukraine is in dire need of F-16 fighters to change the game (Photo: Sky News).
The Danish Ministry of Defense confirmed in a statement to Newsweek on Sunday, January 7, that the shipment is "currently scheduled to take place in the second quarter of 2024," noting that "the delivery timeline is subject to change."
Col. Yurii Ihnat, a spokesman for the Ukrainian Air Force, recently denied any delays and said the jets would be delivered in the spring. Ihnat said he expected Ukraine’s most “advanced” group of F-16 pilots to be fully trained by the spring, although some training could stretch into 2025.
"A group of pilots studying in the UK is about to graduate in 2023 and they will be trained there for up to two years before being upgraded to the F-16... Another group is studying in Arizona (USA), expected to graduate at the end of 2024," said Colonel Ihnat.
Denmark has pledged to donate a total of 19 F-16s to Ukraine, with 14 initially scheduled for delivery this year and the remaining five scheduled for delivery in 2025.
Newsweek emailed the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense for comment on January 8 but has not received a response.
According to Guardian, AP, Newsweek, Kyiv Independent, Ukrainska Pravda, Petrenko, Rybar. Geroman, RVvoenkory
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