THE RUSSO-UKRAINE WAR BRIEF
Day 1153 of the full scale invasion
Slava Ukraini! In early 2022 I began a Telegram channel aggregating news from a number of sources daily on the war in Ukraine. In June 2023 I began providing a daily draft for the Ukraine War Brief Podcast collecting news from over 70 sources daily, which formed the basis of the script. While the Podcast no longer exists I have continued to make this Brief available for my followers here on Substack for those who wish to keep up with the news from the war.
All the latest news on the Russo-Ukraine War 6 days per week
ALONG THE CONTACT LINE
GSAFU Morning Report
For: Apr 21, 2025
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in its Operational Information update at 08:00 on Apr 21 stated that day 1153 of the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation against Ukraine had begun.
The situation on the line of combat remains tense in some sectors. Ukrainian defenders continue to actively counteract the Russian aggressor, causing them significant losses in personnel, equipment and technology. Exhausting the enemy along the entire front line and continuing to disrupt the plans of Russian occupiers to advance deeper into the territory of Ukraine.
During the past two days, 223 combat engagements took place.
Over the past 48 hours, the enemy carried out 103 air strikes, used 3,738 drones and fired approximately 7,780 artillery shells across the positions of Ukrainian forces and civilians.
Ukrainian and Russian sources accused each other of violating Putin’s unilaterally declared Easter truce across the front line on the evening of April 19 and on April 20.
Russia broke its self imposed Easter ceasefire nearly 3,000 times.
Ukraine's forces reported 2,935 violations of Russia's own Easter ceasefire vow, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said early on Monday.
"The nature of Ukrainian actions will continue to be mirrored: we will respond to silence with silence, our strikes will be to protect against Russian strikes," Zelenskyy said in a post on the Telegram messaging app.
Air Force Daily Report
33 ENEMY UAVS SHOT DOWN, 36 SIMULATOR UAVS FAILED TO REACH THEIR TARGETS (LOCATIONALLY LOST)
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On the night of Apr 19, 2025 (9:00 p.m. Apr 18), the Russian occupiers launched a strike on Ukraine with ground-based and air-based missiles and strike UAVs.
According to preliminary data, the Air Force radio-technical troops detected and escorted 95 enemy air attack vehicles — 8 missiles of various types and 87 strike UAVs (simulator drones of other types), including:
- 3 Iskander-M ballistic missiles (launch area – Crimea);
- 2 Onyx anti-ship missiles (launch area – Crimea);
- 3 Kh-31P anti-radar missiles;
- 87 Shahed attack UAVs and other types of simulator drones (launch areas – Millerovo, Kursk, Primorsko-Akhtarsk – Russian Federation, Gvardiyskoe – Crimea).
The enemy air attack was repelled by aviation, anti-aircraft missile units, electronic warfare equipment, and mobile fire groups of the Defense Forces of Ukraine.
As of 09:00, it has been confirmed that 33 Shahed attack UAVs (and other types of drones) have been shot down in the east, north, and south of the country.
36 enemy drones-simulators - lost in location (without negative consequences).
As a result of the enemy attack, the Odessa, Kharkiv, Sumy, Donetsk, and Zaporizhia regions suffered.
42 ENEMY UAVS SHOT DOWN, 47 SIMULATOR UAVS FAILED TO REACH THEIR TARGETS (LOCATIONALLY LOST)
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On the night of Apr 21, 2025 (02:00 on Apr 21), the enemy struck the Kherson region with an Onyx anti-ship cruise missile from Crimea, the Mykolaiv region with two Kh-31P anti-radar missiles from the airspace over the Black Sea, and also attacked Ukraine with 96 strike UAVs (simulator drones of other types) - launch areas: Millerovo, Kursk, Bryansk, Primorsko-Akhtarsk - RF, Gvardiyske - Crimea.
The enemy air attack was repelled by aviation, anti-aircraft missile units, electronic warfare equipment, and mobile fire groups of the Defense Forces of Ukraine.
As of 09:00, it has been confirmed that 42 Shahed attack UAVs (and other types of drones) have been shot down in the east, north, south, and center of the country.
47 enemy drones-simulators - lost in location (without negative consequences).
As a result of the enemy attack, the Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk, and Cherkasy regions suffered.
Combat Operations in the Russian Federation
Ukrainian and Russian sources accused each other of violating Putin’s unilaterally declared Easter truce across the front line on the evening of April 19 and on April 20.
The Khortytsia operational-strategic group
(Responsible for the northeastern part of Ukraine. )
Ukrainian and Russian sources accused each other of violating Putin’s unilaterally declared Easter truce across the front line on the evening of April 19 and on April 20.
The Tavria operational-strategic group
(Responsible for the central-eastern and southeastern part of Ukraine.)
Ukrainian and Russian sources accused each other of violating Putin’s unilaterally declared Easter truce across the front line on the evening of April 19 and on April 20.
The Odesa operational-strategic group
(Responsible for Kherson, Qırım, (also known as Crimea) and the Black Sea.)
There have been no major changes to the combat environment since our last report.
TEMPORARILY OCCUPIED TERRITORIES
Nothing major to report.
THE HOME FRONT
Russian attacks on Ukraine kill 3, injure 7 over past 24 hours.
Russian attacks across Ukrainian regions killed at least three civilians and injured at least seven over the past day, the Kyiv Independent reported citing regional authorities on Apr 21.
Some of the strikes were reported to take place on April 20, a date supposedly covered by Russia's Easter ceasefire, which was said to come into effect at 6 p.m. on April 19 and last until midnight on Apr 21.
Ukraine reported nearly 3,000 violations on Russia's side, including 96 ground assaults on Ukrainian positions, 1,882 instances of shelling, and 950 drone attacks, President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
At 2 a.m., Russian forces attacked Ukraine with an Onyx anti-ship cruise missile from occupied Crimea against Kherson Oblast where three people were killed and three injured in Russian attacks over the past day, Governor Oleksandr Prokudin reported.
Two Kh-31P anti-radar missiles against Mykolaiv Oblast, on the morning of Apr 21, no information is available regarding any casualties but explosions were heard..
Four people were injured in Russian attacks in Donetsk Oblast on Apr 20, including two in Zoria, one in Pryshyne, and one in Novoekonomichne, Governor Vadym Filashkin said.
A drone attack against the Kivsharivka village near Kupiansk in Kharkiv Oblast hit a residential building and caused fire, burning down 36 apartments, Governor Oleh Syniehubov said. No casualties were reported, as the building was reportedly uninhabited.
On the morning of Apr 21 there were reports of drone attacks on Cherkasy Oblast. No casualties were reported.
Kyiv and Washington urged Moscow to extend the ceasefire beyond Easter, a proposition that the Kremlin has rejected.
Ukraine and the U.S. previously agreed on a full 30-day truce during talks in Jeddah on Mar 11, but Russia continues to refuse a ceasefire unless it includes a halt on military aid to Ukraine.
Prepared strikes on AFU airfields in western Ukraine: GRU agent detained
SSU CI jointly with the National Police detained an agent of the Russian military intelligence (GRU), who was operating in Khmelnytskyi region. The SSU press centre announced.
According to the investigation, the offender was a 26-year-old local resident with a drug addiction who was recruited by Russians through anonymous telegram channels. In return for a monetary reward, she passed the enemy information about the airfields and logistics warehouses of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
As noted, she rented an apartment near the logistics centre of Ukrainian troops for surveillance and recorded the movement of equipment and its maintenance schedule. She also studied the routes of mobile air defence fire groups.
The SSU prevented a possible enemy strike, which was planned to bypass the air defence system and hit the facility at the moment of maximum concentration of military and equipment. During the search, the SSU seized the detainee's phone, which she used to contact the GRU.
The woman was served a notice of suspicion of high treason committed under martial law (Article 111(2) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). She faces life imprisonment with confiscation of property.
RUSSIAN WORLD
Moscow court finds Google guilty of disclosing Russian war casualties.
A Moscow court has found Alphabet's opens new tab Google guilty of disclosing personal data of Russian servicemen who died in Ukraine, Russia's TASS propaganda agency reported on Monday, citing court documents.
The court's documents say that in a video published on YouTube, information on the losses in Ukraine of Russian servicemen, as well as their personal data, were disclosed, TASS reported.
Russia has for several years ordered foreign technology platforms to remove content it deems illegal, such as what it calls "fakes" about the war in Ukraine, issuing small but persistent fines when it sees failures to comply.
Google did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment outside business hours.
Russia's President Vladimir Putin accused Google in December of being a tool used by the U.S. government headed then by former President Joe Biden, to score political points.
Russia is militarising its youth through its education system.
The UK Ministry of Defence in their Apr 21 Intelligence Update on Ukraine stated that Russia’s education system is becoming increasingly ideological, which suggests that aggressive expansionist sentiments will only become more entrenched in Russian society.
The review states that since 2022, Russia’s education system has become more politicised, ideologised and militarised, reflecting the wider goals of the Russian leadership.
The report refers to an investigation by the non-state Russian media outlet Verstka, which found that educational materials increasingly include content in support of the so-called "special military operation" [the term Russians use to refer to their war of aggression in Ukraine – ed.] and anti-Western rhetoric infused with patriotic pro-Russian narratives, while references to Ukraine are being removed.
"The Russian state highly likely seeks to use the education system to develop a more militarised, nationalistic society. The 2024 Youth Strategy spoke of the importance of 'increasing the prestige of military service and providing support to young military personnel and their families'.
The intent is almost certainly to facilitate both deeper support for Russia’s illegal war against Ukraine, and greater willingness amongst the young to join the military suffering significant casualties. These efforts are also aimed at indoctrinating Russia's young into a rejection of the legally mandated, and internationally recognised basis for Ukraine's nationhood and sovereignty."
The UK analysts suggest that this level of indoctrination and militarisation within Russia’s education system – and more broadly in all programmes aimed at children and young people – will entrench aggressive expansionist attitudes in Russian society for the long term.
RELATED INTERNATIONAL NEWS
US peace proposal reportedly freezes current front lines, recognizes Crimea as Russian, blocks Ukraine’s NATO bid.
The Trump administration presented a confidential plan to Ukraine outlining proposals to resolve the war with Russia, including recognition of Crimea as Russian territory and excluding Ukraine from NATO, the Wall Street Journal reports.
This comes as the US under Trump is conducting negotiations with both parties to end the Russo-Ukrainian war. However, Trump’s peace efforts have not brought any significant results so far, even though he claimed he could resolve the conflict within 24 hours of taking office.
President Trump expressed growing frustration with the stalled peace negotiations, indicating that the US might withdraw from its mediation efforts if no progress is achieved soon.
The document was delivered to Ukrainian officials during a meeting in Paris on 17 April and is expected to receive a formal response from Kyiv during upcoming trilateral talks with US and European officials in London this week. If alignment is reached, the proposals could then be passed on to Russia.
If the US were to recognize the annexation of Crimea formally, it would mark a reversal of more than a decade of bipartisan US policy.
According to WSJ, the US plan calls for a cease-fire along current front lines and suggests designating the area around the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant as a neutral zone under possible American oversight.
The US peace proposals, however, do not recognize Russia’s claimed annexation of four additional oblasts in eastern Ukraine, but also do not call for the withdrawal of Russian troops from those areas.
The plan does not propose reducing Ukraine’s military forces or limiting the possibility of Western military support. It also does not oppose the deployment of European troops to Ukraine. These were the demands that Russia expressed towards Ukraine during negotiations with US representatives.
“Every sovereign nation on Earth has a right to defend itself,” Rubio said. “Ukraine will have a right to defend itself and to enter into whatever agreements it wants.”
MILITARY & TECH
Ukraine allocates a third of its defense budget for high-tech weapons production.
The Defense Ministry has allocated one-third of its defense budget to production of high-tech weaponry, including drones, electronic warfare systems, and missile technologies, the Kyiv Independent reported citing Hlib Kanievskyi, a procurement chief at the ministry, on Apr 21.
"Defense procurement today is not only about meeting the needs of the Armed Forces. It is also a powerful driver for the development of the Ukrainian technology sector, especially in the areas of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), electronic warfare, and missile technology," said Kanievskyi.
Since the start of the full-scale invasion, Ukraine has been developing and deploying technological innovations and cutting-edge unmanned systems. Both Ukraine and Russia have increasingly relied on drone warfare, using aerial, naval, and ground-based drones for reconnaissance and combat missions.
In a continued effort to strengthen cooperation with domestic arms manufacturers, the ministry held a working meeting with representatives of companies specializing in drones and other advanced military systems.
The meeting was part of an ongoing dialogue between the government and Ukrainian defense industry players aimed at improving transparency, competition, and efficiency in procurement, the ministry said in a statement.
Kanievskyi said that the unification of technical standards for drones is among the key objectives for 2025. This move is expected to streamline procurement procedures, create a single framework for evaluating products, and accelerate decision-making. Standardization would also enable the ministry to scale up partnerships with trusted suppliers more efficiently.
The ministry is further considering new formats for working with defense contractors. Rather than purchasing individual systems or weapons, Ukraine is exploring contracts for comprehensive solutions that include training, technical support, maintenance, and system upgrades.
Since the launch of Russia’s full-scale invasion in Feb 2022, Ukraine has increasingly turned to innovation and home production. More than 40% of the weapons used on the front line are now produced in Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Apr 16.
In the 2025 budget, Ukraine allocated $1.3 billion to defense manufacturing to reduce its reliance on foreign arms deliveries. The government plans to raise over $1 billion this year to support local arms procurement through a so-called Danish model, which means purchasing weapons directly from Ukrainian producers.
North Korean M1991 MLRS Now in Russian Service.
Russia is expected to receive hundreds of artillery systems from North Korea, Defense Express reports.
Footage has emerged confirming the presence of North Korea's 240 mm M1991 MLRS in service with Russian forces.
Military journalist Yurii Butusov drew attention to footage showing the M1991 system inside what appears to be a hangar, where Russian personnel are installing improvised anti-drone protection on the launcher.
As of January 2025, the Chief of the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine, Kyrylo Budanov, reported that Russia had already received 120 MLRS units from North Korea and was expected to receive another batch of similar size in the near future.
The M1991 MLRS, showcased by North Korea in May 2023 during tests of its so-called precision-guided rockets, is effectively a counterpart to the Soviet 220 mm Uragan system. In addition, it is capable of firing unguided rockets with high-explosive 90-kg warheads. Each launcher is equipped with 22 tubes.
This latest appearance adds to the growing list of North Korean weaponry being integrated into Russian operations, which also includes self-propelled artillery systems such as the M1989 and M1979, previously analyzed by Defense Express.
That’s it for today’s Brief folks if you would like to keep up with events in Ukraine daily please consider subscribing, it’s free!
Thanks Grumpy! 47 is losing on every front. I detest he wants to cede control of Crimea to Russia and gave Putin all he wanted. Never in my life did I imagine a Russo-US alliance to make warfare legal.