Russia-Ukraine SITREP for 17 NOV 2023 21:45 PST - Stalled U.S. Military Aid is Impacting the Battlefield (Patreon)

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SITREP 537 is 49 pages and a full report.

What's Happening

What's the big story? It is becoming clear that Ukraine's dwindling ammunition supply is starting to impact military capabilities across multiple axes.

What's the second story? The Chinese container ship NewNew Polar Bear has some explaining to do. 

Summary

•  There are map updates
•  Fighting continues in the Kupyansk AO
•  Russian forces restarted offensive operations in the Soledar AO
•  Fighting continued near Klishchiivka and Andriivka
•  Ukraine has launched spoiling attacks southeast of Shumy in the area of Horlivka to try and relieve pressure on Avdiivka
•  Russian forces continued attempts to advance in the direction of Keramik and Stepove from the Krasnohorivka Plateau
•  Russian troops briefly reached the outer fence of the Avdiivka Coke Plant but were eliminated
•  Russian forces made marginal gains southeast of Avdiivka near the Yasinuvata Two Station and the former H-20 Highway interchange
•  Russian forces used a VBIED north of Vodyane, where they were unable to consolidate gains in the no man’s land
•  Ukrainian forces only have a toehold of Marinka falling back to the very western edge of the obliterated settlement
•  Fighting continued near Novomykhailivka
•  Fighting continued south of Orikhiv in Zaporizhzhia, near Verbove and Robotyne
•  The IAEA provided an update on the status of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant and reported problems with Reactors 5 and 6
•  The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (GSAFU) and the Office of President Zelenskyy confirmed that Ukrainian forces have established “several" bridgeheads on the left bank of the Dnipro and Konka Rivers
•  Ukrainian forces have established the new bridgehead near Hola Prystan
•  On November 10, Ukrainian caused dozens of casualties when it struck a Russian convoy in occupied Hladkivka
•  A major ammunition depot in the Russian Volgograd region exploded, destroying rockets, artillery shells, and other munitions
•  At least one drone struck an aircraft factory in the Russian Smolensk region, with only minor damage reported
•  On November 16-17, Ukraine shot down nine out of ten Shahed-136 kamikaze drones
•  Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported that if Ukraine does not get increased ammunition shortages in the immediate future, Ukrainian troops will be forced to withdraw from key areas
•  The Deputy Head of the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine was dismissed with no reason given
•  Lithuania, the Netherlands, and Finland announced new military aid packages for Ukraine
•  Russian officials are blocking a planned protest by the family members of conscripts who were illegally deployed to Ukraine, citing COVID-19 regulations
•  Funeral announcements and memorials have confirmed that three sailors from the Kilo-class submarine Rostov-on-Don were killed on September 13
•  Funeral announcements also suggested that the entire crew of the large landing ship Minsk, 98 sailors and officers, were also killed in the same missile attack on occupied Sevastopol
•  Ukrainian officials reported that 4,337 soldiers and civilians are being held as prisoners of war by Russia and also reported that Russia has ended prisoner-of-war exchanges
•  In an open letter to the International Committee of the Red Cross, Ukraine accused the organization of taking a passive approach to enforcing international humanitarian law and its duty to provide basic protection and accountability of POWs
•  Four more children were repatriated to free Ukraine from the occupied territories
•  Armenia became the 124th country to ratify the Rome Statute
•  Finland closed its border with Russia due to continued provocations and attempts to push undocumented migrants from Syria, Iran, and Iraq over its border
•  Estonia installed antitank barriers at its closed borders with Russia
•  Investigators from Finland and Estonia confirmed that the anchor from the Chinese-flagged container ship NewNew Polar Bear damaged the Balticconnetor Pipeline on October 7-8
•  Russia lifted its temporary ban on the export of gasoline almost two months after taking the measure to alleviate a national fuel crisis

Malcontent News Russia Ukraine War Podcast will restart on Friday.

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