Overview

• By mid‑afternoon on September 18, the General Staff reported 100 engagements, including 43 Russian assault attempts on the Pokrovsk axis with several fights ongoing.
• President Volodymyr Zelensky, speaking from Donetsk region, said counteroperations around Pokrovsk–Dobropillia derailed a planned Russian offensive and claimed over 2,500 Russian casualties there in recent weeks.
• Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces said they struck the Volgograd oil refinery overnight and reported its work stopped, while Bashkortostan’s governor confirmed a drone attack and fire at Gazprom Neftekhim Salavat, which an SBU source attributed to long‑range Ukrainian drones.
• Authorities widened forced evacuations in Dnipropetrovsk region, saying more than 1,300 children must be moved, and officials in Kup’yansk described a critical situation as a counter‑sabotage sweep captured Russian operatives.
• The Institute for the Study of War reported Kremlin deputy chief Dmitry Kozak’s removal after disputes over the war, and Yale researchers alleged abducted Ukrainian children in Russia were used to assemble drones and other equipment.