Russian advance on Kyiv stalls

Apr 2, 2022

Russia's attempt to capture Kyiv in March-April 2022 ended in a catastrophic failure, with Ukrainian forces successfully defending the capital against what Western officials expected would be an overwhelming assault. The invasion began February 24 with a helicopter assault on Hostomel airfield by Russia's 45th Guards Special Purpose Airborne Brigade, but Ukrainian resistance inflicted heavy losses and ultimately forced a Russian retreat. Russia's military proved incapable of basic functions like logistics and combined operations, with a massive resupply convoy stretching dozens of miles failing to provide meaningful support. On March 25, Russia declared it had achieved its Kyiv objectives and would refocus on the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine, marking a strategic retreat from the capital.

Failed Russian assault on Hostomel airfield and Kyiv

▪Russian Mi-8 assault helicopters flew south toward Kyiv on the first morning of the war to attack Hostomel airfield on the northwest outskirts of the capital.
▪The Russian 45th Guards Special Purpose Airborne Brigade conducted the Hostomel airfield assault.
▪Several Russian Il-76 heavy-lift transport planes carrying paratroopers were reportedly downed by Ukrainian defenses during an effort to take control of Vasylkiv military airbase south of Kyiv.
▪President Vladimir Putin launched Russia's war on Ukraine on February 24 after months of buildup on Ukraine's borders.

Russian military failures and tactical incompetence

▪Vladimir Putin failed to achieve his goal of quickly crushing Ukraine's outgunned and outnumbered army.
▪The Russian resupply convoy never provided resupply of any value to Russian forces assembling around Kyiv.

Ukrainian resistance and Western support

▪Ukraine's forces gained from Western training that intensified after Putin's 2014 seizure of Crimea and incursion into the Donbas.

Strategic retreat and shift to eastern Ukraine

▪Vladimir Putin made an incursion into the Donbas in 2014.
▪Within days of Russia's March 25 declaration, the Kyiv retreat was in full view.
▪On March 25, barely a month after the invasion began, Russia declared it had achieved its goals in the Kyiv region and would shift focus to the separatist Donbas area in eastern Ukraine.
▪Vladimir Putin may yet manage to refocus his war effort on a narrower goal of expanding Russian control in the Donbas.
▪Vladimir Putin may seek to secure a land corridor from the Donbas to the Crimean Peninsula.