As Reuters writes, According to the war map published on Tuesday by the recognized Ukrainian Deepstate platform, Russian forces have moved at least 10 km north in two directions in recent days. It is an element of an offensive to lead to full control over the Donetsk circuit.
This is one of Russia's most significant progress over the past year. Deepstate announced that the Russian troops moved near three villages on the section of the front related to the cities of Kostiantyniwka and Pokrowsk, which Moscow is trying to circle, using staff shortages on the Ukrainian side. “The situation is quite chaotic, because the enemy, finding gaps in defense, penetrates deeper, trying to quickly strengthen and accumulate forces for further attack,” was passed on the Telegram channel.
The meeting of US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin is to take place on Friday in Alaska, and one of the topics is to be completed by the end of the war in Ukraine. Unconfirmed media reports suggest that Putin was to tell Trump to expect Ukraine to give the rest of the Donetsk region, which Russia is not yet controlled, writes Reuters.
- Zelanski thanks the EU. “Roads to the room cannot be marked without Ukraine”
Pressure before negotiations and warnings from Kiev
A former officer of the Ukrainian army Tatarigami_ua reminded that “in 2014 and 2015 Russia began large offensive before negotiations to gain an advantage.” As he assessed, “The current situation is serious, but far from the collapse that some are talking about.”
In turn, the former adviser to the Kremlin Sergei Markow said that Russian progress was possible thanks to the “partial collision of the front” caused by a deficiency of soldiers on the side of Ukraine. “This break is like a gift for Putin and Trump during negotiations,” he assessed.
The President of Ukraine Wołodymyr Zelanski consistently rejects the possibility of giving the territory, emphasizing that each peace system must be “fair”. Bohdan Krotewycz, former chief of the staff of the Azov Regiment, warned that “the line of contact between the fighting as a permanent line does not actually exist.”
