All articles tagged with #donbas
Zelensky says Russia plans to draft about 300,000 more troops—potentially 500,000 total—to push in Donbas after mid-September elections; Kyiv reports heavy losses and a ramping Russian missile program, while Ukraine seeks extra air-defense systems from France and Germany amid a looming winter energy-strike threat and a roughly $27 billion defense funding gap.
Analysts warn the Donbas fortress belt around Sloviansk and Kramatorsk is under growing pressure, with Russian forward positions just 12–13 km away. If Russia’s pace continues, infiltrations into Sloviansk and Kramatorsk could begin by December 2026. Ukraine is urged to reinforce the sector urgently—potentially deploying the 3rd Army Corps to relieve both banks of the Siverskyi Donets—though experts warn that reinforcement may only delay the inevitable and retreat could concede Donbas control to Russia.
Ukrainian drone swarms exposed the limits of Russia’s Arena-M active protection on T-72B3A tanks in a July Donbas battle near Shakhove: the system could neutralize some drones but could not prevent tank losses amid large drone volumes, underscoring how drones are reshaping frontline warfare; Russians pushed two columns toward Shakhove from Vozdvyzhenka and Novoekonomichne, Rodynske fell after prolonged fighting, and the Pokrovsk–Dobropillia front is now more fortified as Moscow looks for a way to keep tanks viable on a drone-dominated battlefield.
Anatol Lieven argues that hardliners on both sides and much of the Western media cling to fantasies of a quick victory or decisive breakthrough, but the Ukraine war has settled into a costly stalemate over a small Donbas strip with little chance of rapid transformation; he warns that without reanimated détente and flexible diplomacy, the risk of miscalculation or escalation remains high and a negotiated peace will require painful concessions many leaders resist.
Vladimir Putin shuffled Russia’s Ukraine leadership, appointing Andrei Ivanayev to command the Center group of forces and Pyotr Bolgayev to lead the East group, while Valery Solodchuk moves to a logistics post and Denis Lyamin takes charge of the newly created Unmanned Systems Forces. The reshuffle comes as Moscow’s Donbas offensive slows, with analysts skeptical that Russia can seize the remainder of Donetsk by 2027 at the current pace.
ISW’s July 23, 2026 assessment finds no confirmed battlefield ground advances by Russian or Ukrainian forces on July 22–23. Ukrainian long-range strikes targeted Russian energy and logistics assets across multiple regions, causing fires at facilities in Ulyanovsk, Voronezh, and Bashkortostan and affecting operations at the Caspian Pipeline Consortium, with some impact on shipping in the Black Sea region. Russia conducted a broad drone/missile campaign against Ukraine, including Crimea-area energy targets. On the ground, Russian offensives in northern Sumy, Kharkiv, Oskil, Slovyansk, Pokrovsk, and Oleksandrivka directions did not gain territory, while Ukrainian forces continued counterattacks and drone-enabled reconnaissance. In the south, Russian attempts near Zaporizhzhia and Kherson yielded no progress; power outages persisted in occupied Kherson, and Ukrainian strikes continued against energy infrastructure in occupied Crimea. Belarus announced a fall conscription cycle; Zelensky reiterated willingness for peace talks with a possible trilateral meeting in Fall 2026, while Rubio rejected any Alaska Summit deal ending the war.
Zelensky dismissed Putin’s assertion that Kostiantynivka is under Russian control as a media stunt and warned that if it were true, Putin would have no problem meeting him there to resolve the war. Ukrainian officials say the city remains under Kyiv’s control despite some Russian incursions, as fighting in Donbas continues and the fortress belt near Sloviansk–Kramatorsk remains a focal point.
ISW reports that Russia’s spring-summer 2026 offensive has failed to secure operationally significant gains; June 2026 saw only about 30.4 square kilometers gained at an average pace of 1.01 sq km per day, far slower than June 2025. Ukrainian counterattacks in Kupyansk and Oleksandrivka remain effective, with gains concentrated in Kostyantynivka’s urban terrain at high cost. In the first six months of 2026 Russia seized or infiltrated about 622.6 square kilometers, roughly 28% of the 2025 six-month total, and suffered heavy casualties and equipment losses. Ukrainian long-range and intermediate-range strikes are disrupting Russian logistics and oil infrastructure, causing gasoline shortages and pressuring refinery capacity. Russia has closed seven railway border crossings with Finland, Latvia, and Estonia and is leaning on crude exports while importing refined fuels from India. Belarusian airspace and signal repeaters remain contested. Overall, ISW expects no rapid Russian breakthrough and continued attrition in the near term.
In a televised address, Zelensky condemned Russian drone strikes on Zaporizhzhia targeting civilian transit and a missile strike on Dnipro that killed civilians, vowed Ukraine would respond with precision against Russia’s war machine, and highlighted Moscow’s repeated failures by noting Putin’s 15 deadlines to capture Donetsk have all been missed since 2022. He also outlined Ukraine’s energy and sanctions strategy with partners and urged international support to bring peace, while stressing that Kyiv’s actions aim at destroying Russia’s war machine, not civilians.
President Zelensky said Russia has moved 15 self-imposed deadlines to capture Ukraine’s Donetsk region since the 2022 invasion, with Moscow obsessively pursuing Donbas; Ukraine’s forces hold their positions and Zelensky warned the deadline would shift again unless Russia ends the war.
Zelenskyy says Russia has set 15 deadlines to capture Donetsk since the invasion, illustrating a repeated failure to seize the Donbas; he outlines a pattern of target dates from 2022 through 2025 and warns that further deadlines could bring more Russian casualties, while noting recent strikes on Ukrainian civilian infrastructure and ongoing defense coordination with partners, including a Danish drone deal.
Zelensky says Russia’s repeated delays to capture Donbas reveal a faltering strategy and warns that if Moscow keeps fighting, ordinary Russians—even those queuing for gasoline—could face more hardship; he also notes Putin’s peace proposal and the Kremlin’s rejection, with Meduza explaining its AI-assisted translation of the report.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said Moscow will continue its operation to fully seize four Ukrainian regions, rejected Ukraine’s proposal for a halt to hostilities, and called for stronger air defenses amid intensified Ukrainian drone strikes, while suggesting Belarus could aid peace talks and noting there was no formal agreement reached in earlier US-led talks.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said Moscow will continue its battlefield campaign to fully capture four Ukrainian regions (Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson), rejecting Ukraine’s proposal for a mutual halt to hostilities and warning against being distracted by it. He also called for boosting air-defense production to counter drone strikes, acknowledged fuel shortages linked to attacks, and suggested Belarus could assist in peace talks, though he noted no formal agreement has been reached.
Francis Farrell reports from the Donbas front where elite Ukrainian drone teams, aided by Starlink and Western tech, have stabilized lines in a grueling war of attrition; Ukraine aims to defeat Moscow by building a dense, resilient defense that increases the cost of any Russian advance, while Russia continues to seek territorial gains and degrade Ukraine’s forces—showing that victory will come only through perseverance, immense human toll, and mass mobilization rather than a quick breakthrough.