President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said after a briefing with Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi that Russian forces attempted to advance their ground assault operations while Ukraine was defending against a massive aerial attack.
According to Zelenskyy, there were almost 150 Russian attacks against Ukrainian positions and more than 4,500 shellings, including from heavy weapons.
The president said that the most intense situation was observed in the Pokrovsk direction, where Russian forces apparently tried to take advantage of Ukraine’s focus on air defense.
“Russians essentially tried to develop assault operations under the cover of their massive strike. When the maximum of our forces was focused on protection from missiles and drones, the Russians went for a significant intensification of their ground attacks,” Zelenskyy said.
He added that “Russians received a worthy rebuff” from Ukrainian defenders.
The statement follows a massive combined Russian attack on Ukraine during the night of 24 April. The assault resulted in at least 12 deaths and 90 injured people in Kyiv alone.
Zelenskyy previously said that the strike on the capital was likely carried out using a ballistic missile manufactured in North Korea.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported 133 combat engagements across the front by 10 pm on 24 April, with Russian forces attempting to break through Ukrainian defenses in the Pokrovsk direction 51 times.
The Pokrovsk direction in Donetsk Oblast remains one of the hottest sections of the front, consistently recording the highest number of combat engagements over the past year.
On 18 April, the National Guard of Ukraine reported repelling one of the largest Russian motorcycle assaults. According to the soldiers, the battle took place on 17 April in the Pokrovsk direction and lasted over seven hours.
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