Russian ballistic missile attack on Kryvyi Rih 14 people injured including 2 children

Russian forces attacked a residential area in Kryvyi Rih, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, with ballistic missiles on March 14, injuring at least 12 people, Governor Serhii Lysak reported. Among the wounded are two boys, aged 2 and 15.

The strike damaged four apartment buildings, four houses, and several business facilities. Six people have been hospitalized.

The Russian strike damaged three apartment buildings. Business facilities were destroyed. The city's utilities have suffered damage.

Kryvyi Rih, President Volodymyr Zelensky's hometown, has been repeatedly targeted by Russian missile attacks. Last week, a Russian strike on a local hotel killed six and injured over 30 people, including children.

Russians attack Ukraine with 2 missiles and 178 UAVs overnight

Russia launched two Iskander-M ballistic missiles and 178 drones against Ukraine overnight on March 14-15, Ukraine's Air Force reported. Air defenses shot down 130 drones, while 38 others reportedly disappeared from radar.

The missiles were fired from Russia's Kursk Oblast, and drones were launched from multiple locations, including Russian cities and occupied Crimea.

At least 15 oblasts, including Kharkiv, Kyiv, and Odesa, were shot down by drones. The attacks directly targeted several regions: Dnipropetrovsk, Kharkiv, Odesa, Sumy, Chernihiv, and Kyiv.

The Power grid facilities in Dnipropentovsk and Odessa oblasts were damage, which caused power outages. According to Odessa Oblast Military Administration the city of Chornomorsk is entirely without power due to damage to the energy infrastructure caused by the strike. Invincibility centres are being deployed promptly. All appropriate services are working to deal with the aftermath." [Invincibility centres are heated premises stocked with food and power banks to assist residents facing hardships due to power cuts.

In Chernihiv, a Russian drone hit a nine-story residential building. Fortunately, there were no casualties among civilians.

On the evening of March 14, Russian forces launched a large-scale attack on the city of Sumy. Around 10 explosions had occurred in the city. The strike caused power outages across the city.

Putin seeks to prolong war, the ceasefire is unlikely to happen

The Kremlin is not considering a ceasefire in Ukraine and aims to prolong any peace negotiations to gain military advantage, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported. Following Russian President Vladimir Putin’s meeting with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff on March 13, Kremlin statements confirmed Moscow’s unwillingness to support the U.S. and Ukraine's ceasefire initiative. According to ISW, if Russia agrees to a temporary truce, it will likely use the pause to rest and rearm its forces, later violating the agreement and blaming Ukraine. U.S. intelligence also believes that Putin remains committed to conquering Ukraine entirely, aligning with Russia's longstanding expansionist goals. Recent calls by Putin for direct talks with Donald Trump are seen as an attempt to elevate Russia's status and delay serious negotiations.

Classified U.S. intelligence documents cited by The Washington Post and statements from Western intelligence officials and U.S. lawmakers confirm that there is no sign of Putin’s willingness to engage in genuine peace talks. Russian insider sources have indicated that Moscow intends to drag out any negotiations to serve its military interests, while continuing to seek Ukraine's full capitulation. ISW analysts assess that despite ongoing discussions with Trump’s administration, the Kremlin is adhering to its strategy of forcing Ukraine into surrender rather than pursuing a real diplomatic solution.

Putin wants Ukrainian troops in Kursk to surrender as a condition for a possible ceasefire

On March 14, 2025, Russian President Vladimir Putin reportedly issued a veiled threat to U.S. President Donald Trump regarding the fate of Ukrainian soldiers in the Kursk region. Putin’s aide, Yury Ushakov, stated that Russia would guarantee the lives and humane treatment of Ukrainian troops if Kyiv ordered them to lay down their arms and surrender. This message came amid ongoing military tensions, with Russian forces claiming to have surrounded Ukrainian units in Kursk, a claim that has been met with skepticism. The statement appears to be a strategic move to pressure both Ukraine and Trump’s influence as a newly re-elected leader to push for a resolution favorable to Moscow.

Putin’s “guarantee” is most likely a part of a broader tactic of psychological and diplomatic blackmail aimed at exploiting Trump’s perceived willingness to negotiate directly with Russia. Ukrainian officials and analysts view this as an attempt to sow discord between Kyiv and its Western allies, particularly the U.S., at a time when Ukraine’s military position remains precarious. The Kursk situation remains fluid, with no independent confirmation of Russia’s encirclement claims, and Kyiv has not publicly responded to the surrender demand. This development underscores the escalating stakes in the conflict as Putin seeks to test Trump’s administration early in its term, potentially reshaping the dynamics of the war.

Russians used a double tap strike on firefighters extinguishing fire in Kharkiv Oblast

Russian forces attacked a lyceum in Bohodukhiv, Kharkiv Oblast, with UAVs on the night of March 14-15, causing a large fire that engulfed 500 square meters of the school's roof. The initial strike also damaged 18 houses and 5 school buses. While firefighters were working to contain the blaze, Russian troops launched two more attacks on the site, targeting emergency crews and damaging a water tanker. Four civilians suffered injuries and acute stress reactions as a result of the strikes.

The second attack, carried out about an hour later, set fire to a fire engine and another school bus. In total, 42 firefighters and 11 firefighting appliances were involved in extinguishing the fires, and bomb disposal experts were deployed to handle potential unexploded ordnance. The repeated strikes appear aimed at both civilian infrastructure and emergency responders, escalating the scale of destruction and danger in the area.

Reports about encirclment of Ukrainian troops in Kursk oblast aren`t true

According to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) in their March 14, 2025, "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment," there is no evidence to support claims by Russian President Vladimir Putin and repeated by the US President Donald Trump that Ukrainian troops are encircled in Kursk Oblast. ISW notes that despite Putin’s assertions of surrounding Ukrainian forces, including a supposed encirclement of 2,000 troops claimed in October 2024, no geolocated footage or consistent Russian milblogger reports corroborate these statements. Ukraine’s General Staff confirmed on the same date that their units had withdrawn to more advantageous defensive positions without any threat of encirclement, maintaining access to the Ukrainian-Russian border through a salient under their control, contradicting Russian narratives and indicating that Ukrainian forces retain operational flexibility in the region.

President Zelensky also confirmed that that there is no encirclement of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in Kursk region.