The maps of the war in Ukraine today: the Russian army advances from the south and tries to encircle Kiev

March 4 | Russian troops advance from the south

At south of the Ukraine the Russian Army manages to advance. They have entered the cities of Mariupol and Kherson, according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) and New York Times. This progress has allowed it to break through to Mikolaiv100 kilometers from Odessa, a key port on the Black Sea.

The Kremlin army controls the nuclear power plant Zaporizhia, the largest in Europe, since this Friday morning, according to local authorities. In the night, a Russian missile hit the plant but without damaging the main reactor, indicates the International Atomic Energy Agency, and the fire was extinguished in a few hours. Kremlin forces have been attacking Zaporizhia since at least Tuesday.

In the northeast, the Russian army is trying to take control of the country’s second largest city, Kharkov, according to the ISW. Here in the last 24 hours the bombardments have intensified: there are images of civil buildings destroyed in the center.

In the north, the Russian objective of surrounding Kyiv on several flanks it is progressing slower than expected, according to the ISW. The troops who have spent days trying to isolate the capital from the north have been repelled by the Ukrainian resistance. Russian troops have opened a new flank of advance from Belarus towards the city of Yitomir, further west.

Past days

March 3 | Russian troops in Kherson

The Russian contingent has stepped up its offensive on several fronts. In the south, the troops have entered Kherson, according to the Ukrainian authorities in the early hours of Thursday. UK intelligence confirms the presence of troops in the city, but stresses that the military situation “remains unclear.” The city is a strategic point on the Black Sea coast.

The Russians would be at the gates of Mariupol, where they are destroying civil infrastructure and residential areas to push the city to surrender, according to the War Survey (IWS).

In the north the advance continues to envelop Kiev. The Russians have advanced on the northeast flank, and would be near Bobrovytsya, 100 kilometers from the capital. The ISW map has also been updated with a correction: the Russians still do not control the west bank of the Dnieper River north of the city. Its presence is stopped in Chernihiv, about 140 kilometers away.

In the northeast, the bombing of Kharkiv continued, increasing the risk of civilian casualties. According to the ISW, they attacked the city from the north with ground troops.

March 2 | The offensive intensifies on three fronts

Russian troops are preparing a three-pronged siege of Kiev, according to the Institute for the Study of War (IWS). The Russians have been near the capital for days to the north, in the Gostomel airport area, about 30 kilometers from the city. There they would have the bulk of their contingent, according to UK intelligence.

The invaders could also try to reach the city from the west. In the last hours there have been bombings in Borodyanka, 60 kilometers northwest of the capital. There are also images of tanks opening fire between civilian buildings.

The third front of the offensive on Kiev would be to come from the east, if they advance from the already won territories near Chernihiv, they could meet forces advancing from Sumy. Russian troops have been located in Bobrovytsya, some 80 kilometers northeast of the capital.

“The objective is to surround the city and force mass evacuations of Ukrainian civilians,” suggests analyst Franz-Stefan Gady, from the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS).

The rest of the offensive on Ukraine

In the northeast, fighting continues in Kharkov, according to a statement from the Ukrainian Army collected by the BBC. The second Ukrainian city is one of the main fronts of the invasion.

In the south of the country, Russian troops control Berdyansk, forcefully enter Kherson and claim to have surrounded the large town of Mariupol. With their latest advances, they unite two vast areas that were under their control, Donbas and Crimea.

The Russian Army has intensified the bombing of Kiev, Kharkov, Chernihiv and Mariupol since Tuesday, according to British intelligence. Dozens of missile impacts against civilian buildings are counted.

March 1 | Offensive on Kiev

After a warning from the Russian Army to the population of Kiev, Putin’s troops have bombed the capital’s television tower. It is feared that it is the beginning of a new offensive. After two days of relative pause, early on Tuesday three signs heralded more hostilities: a huge convoy of military vehicles headed for Kiev, troops were piling up in eastern Ukraine and the bombardment of the city of Kharkov intensified.

The bulk of the Russian contingent stalking the capital is about 30 kilometers from the northwest, UK intelligence reported in the morning. It is the area of ​​the Gostomel airport, a facility that the Russians bombed days ago. There the Ukrainian forces stopped their advance.

Satellite images have captured a very long caravan of military vehicles in the direction of the capital. This convoy can try to enter Kiev from the north or try to go around the city from further south.

Ground and air attack

Several witnesses document the advance of tanks and other Russian combat means around Borodyanka, on the outskirts of Kiev. Russian forces have also increased the use of artillery around Kharkov and Chernihiv, according to UK intelligence. The use of heavy fire in densely populated areas greatly increases the risk of civilian casualties.

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