On Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that the Ukrainian military has dealt a heavy blow to the Russian forces in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine, one of the main battlefields of the Russia-Ukraine war.
Zelenskyy’s statement was based on a report from the Ukrainian Armed Forces Commander. This contrasts sharply with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s speech to senior Russian military officers the day before, where Putin claimed that Moscow holds the strategic initiative in all front-line combat zones.
In a nighttime video address, Zelenskyy mentioned that he had a conversation with the Ukrainian Armed Forces Commander Oleksandr Syrskyi for nearly an hour, focusing specifically on the “Dobropillia operation, which is our counteroffensive.” He described heavy casualties among Russian forces in that area.
Ukrainian officials reported progress in the “Dobropillia” operation, which is located north of the logistics hub of Pokrovsk, a key target for the slow advance of Russian forces in the Donetsk region.
Zelenskyy emphasized that the Ukrainian military is engaged in comprehensive defense measures, particularly mentioning Kupiansk, a town in northeastern Ukraine that has been under intense Russian attacks for months and is nearly destroyed.
He also mentioned the challenging situation in the Novopavlivka area south of Zaporizhzhia, stating that “our proactive defense actions there have shown good results.”
Currently, the media cannot independently verify the claims of both sides regarding the situation in the conflict.
On Tuesday, Putin stated at a meeting with senior military officers near Saint Petersburg, Russia’s second largest city, that Russia has captured nearly 5,000 square kilometers (approximately 1,930 square miles) of Ukrainian territory in 2025.
Putin claimed that Ukrainian forces are retreating in all front-line zones, despite Kyiv’s attempts to launch attacks deep into Russian territory, which he deemed futile.
The Russian Defense Ministry announced on Wednesday that Russian forces have taken control of the village of Novohryhorivka, located in the southern part of Zaporizhzhia. Recently, Russia has been announcing the capture of new settlements almost daily.
The governor of Kherson region in southern Ukraine reported that attacks by Russian forces on Wednesday resulted in three deaths.
The governor of Sumy region in northern Ukraine, bordering Russia, also reported that Russian forces carried out drone attacks in multiple locations, leading to three fatalities.
(Reference: Reuters)