Victory Chronicles-DAY 1146

The number of injured residents in the Black Sea port city of Odesa has risen to eight, regional authorities said April 14. According to Oleg Kiper, head of the Odesa Regional Military Administration, four of the wounded remain hospitalized, while the others are receiving outpatient care.

The attack damaged several civilian infrastructure sites, including a medical facility, a residential building, a warehouse, a vehicle service station, and private vehicles, Kiper added. Fires broke out at multiple locations but were quickly extinguished by emergency services. 

British intellegince: Russia likely suffered 138,000 casualties this year so far. Russia’s combined military personnel casualty figure stands at a combined 138,000 killed and wounded in its war against Ukraine so far in 2025, according to a British military intelligence assessment released on April 14.

Since the start of its full-scale invasion in February 2022, Russia’s total losses approaching 1 million personnel, the analysis said, citing estimates from the General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces.

British officials noted that Russian forces lost an average of 1,300 troops per day in March 2025, an increase from about 1,250 daily in February. While this remains below the peak daily losses of late 2024 — which reached nearly 1,600 — the upward trend continued into early April.

The report suggests that the growing so-called burn rate indicates intensified Russian assaults along the front line, as Moscow attempts to regain offensive momentum following a lull earlier in the year.

Despite the largely static front line, British analysts observed that Russian casualties in 2025 remain significantly higher than in spring 2024, when daily losses rarely exceeded 1,000 troops.

Russian aerial strikes hit Zaporizhzhia region, spark fires at apartment building and gas station. Russian forces launched airborne strikes on Ukraine’s southern Zaporizhzhia region early on  April 14, setting fire to a nine-story high-rise apartment building in the town of Stepnohirsk and a gas station in the regional capital, officials said.

According to Ivan Fedorov, head of the Zaporizhzhia Regional Military Administration, the strikes caused a power outage in Stepnohirsk following hits by guided aerial bombs. A separate rocket attack ignited the apartment building, though no casualties were reported.

Later in the morning, Fedorov said a Russian drone strike caused a fire at a gas station in the same city. Emergency services extinguished the blaze, and no injuries were reported. Authorities are assessing the damage.

Ukrainian drone evades missiles, destroys Russian air defense system in Kursk region. A Ukrainian first-person view (FPV) drone evaded two missiles and struck a Russian Strela-10 surface-to-air missile system worth about $430 million in Russia’s Kursk region, Ukraine’s Drone Systems Forces said April 14.

The strike was carried out by operators from the Raid 413th Special Purpose Battalion in coordination with the “Bumblebee” drone unit of the 78th Separate Airborne Assault Regiment.

According to the report, Russian troops deployed the Strela-10 system after detecting a Ukrainian reconnaissance drone. The system launched two missiles but failed to intercept the drone, which then conducted a precision strike as the air defense vehicle attempted to withdraw. Ukrainian drone forces published video footage of the strike.

Key Takeaways:

• Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that ongoing US-Russian negotiations are unlikely to result in “lightning-fast results,” contrary to US President Donald Trump’s stated objective of achieving a general ceasefire and lasting peace agreement in Ukraine in the near future.
• Any future general ceasefire or peace agreement must include robust monitoring mechanisms, given the Kremlin’s ongoing efforts to portray Ukraine as violating the long-range energy infrastructure strikes ceasefire without providing evidence of these strikes and despite the lack of public details about the ceasefire’s terms. It remains unclear what monitoring mechanisms the West could leverage to enforce and monitor a future general ceasefire or if the Kremlin would accept any such mechanisms.
• Russian officials continue to weaponize the vague terms of the current ceasefire on long-range strikes against energy infrastructure and ongoing ceasefire negotiations in an effort to falsely portray Ukraine- and not Russia- as unwilling to engage in constructive dialogue.
• Russian forces conducted a devastating ballistic missile strike against Sumy City on April 13, causing more than 100 casualties.
• Ongoing milblogger complaints about the Russian military’s conduct of the war in Ukraine reinforce ISW’s assessment that Russian tactics will degrade Russia’s manpower and materiel resources and contribute to slowing Russian advances along the frontline.
• Ukrainian forces recently advanced near Toretsk and Russian forces recently advanced near Kharkiv City, Borova, and Chasiv Yar.

In Memoriam: Ukrainian soldier Vasyl Kunitskyi, a hero of Ukraine’s defense forces. Vasyl Kunitskyi, 49, a junior sergeant in Ukraine’s 103rd Territorial Defense Brigade, was killed in action on July 27, 2023, on the outskirts of Pershotravneve village in the Izium district of Kharkiv Oblast. Known by the call sign “Shumakher,” he died from fatal wounds during a Russian tank strike.

Born in the village of of Lisovi in Lviv Oblast, Kunitskyi.graduated in 1991 from Vocational School No. 10 with a specialization in masonry and steel-reinforced concrete construction. He moved to the city of Zolochiv in 1998, where he led a dedicated professional life, working in cargo transport and at various regional enterprises including the Zolochiv and Radekhiv sugar plants, Kniazhi Lany LLC, Carpathian Mineral Waters, and Agro-Express-Service. A devotedfather and husband, Kunitskyi spent his free time with loved ones and remained active in his community.

Following the launch of Russia’s full-scale invasion, he joined the Armed Forces of Ukraine. He served in the 64th Battalion as a commander of a grenade launcher fire support unit. For his service, he was awarded the “For Military Valor” badge and a certificate of commendation for exemplary combat performance.

“Vasyl was the best husband and the best father to our sons,” his wife, Iryna, said. “A kind, always smiling person who radiated warmth and love. A true patriot who fought for justice and Ukraine’s future. His memory will live on in the hearts of all who knew him.”

Kunitskyi was laid to rest at the new municipal cemetery in Zolochiv. He is survived by his wife and three sons: Andrii, Roman and Markiyan.

*Vasyl’s story on the Heroes Memorial – a platform for stories about the fallen defenders of Ukraine.

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