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Russian forces have advanced nearly 15 kilometers (9.32 miles) through Ukrainian defensive lines in the Donetsk region, marking some of the most significant gains in the past year and raising alarm in Kyiv ahead of a planned summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday.
Ukrainian and Western military analysts said Russian forces advanced along a narrow corridor parallel to Dobropillia, a coal mining town turned key logistical hub north of Pokrovsk that Russian troops have nearly encircled.
The sudden advance threatens to cut off a vital road linking Dobropillia to Kramatorsk, the de facto capital of Ukrainian-held Donetsk region, while allowing Russian forces to bypass and flank fortifications and defensive lines built in recent months.
"The situation is quite chaotic, with the enemy advancing into our depth after identifying gaps in the defense, before consolidating its positions and gathering forces for new advances," DeepState, a Ukrainian war monitoring group with ties to the defense ministry, wrote on its Telegram page.
The Ukrainian DeepState blog showed Russian advances around 10 kilometers over approximately two days, punching deep into a narrow sliver of Ukraine on the front. The corridor, now apparently under Russian control, threatens Dobropillia, where civilians are fleeing amid Russian drone attacks.
The command of the Dnipro operational group, which oversees defense operations in eastern Ukraine, denied there had been a breakthrough, stating that infiltration of small Russian assault groups "past the first line of Ukrainian positions ... is not equal to 'taking control of the territory.'"
"Of course, the situation is and remains difficult, and the fighting in this region is the most intense compared to other sections of the frontline," the statement added.
Ukraine's general staff said reinforcements had been dispatched to the Pokrovsk part of the frontline "by decision of the commander-in-chief."
Ukraine's top general, Oleksandr Syrskyi, attempted to downplay the deteriorating situation, writing on social media that things were "difficult" but his forces were "holding back the enemy."
The Ukrainian military has been "conducting active operations and has had some success in moving forward, in liberating Ukrainian land" in the Sumy region, he said.
Russia's recent tactical breakthrough north of Pokrovsk is unsurprising given the lack of cohesive defensive lines, and could further develop negatively," said Mike Kofman, a military analyst and senior fellow in the Russia and Eurasia Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
Pasi Paroinen, a military analyst with the Finland-based Black Bird Group, said Russian forces had infiltrated past Ukrainian lines to a depth of roughly 17 kilometers during the past three days.
"Forwardmost Russian units have reportedly reached the Dobropillia–Kramatorsk road T0514 and Russian infiltration groups have also been reported near Dobropillia proper," he wrote on X.
The Russian advance has triggered criticism from Ukrainian military figures and volunteers. They have been warning about a gradual weakening of defensive lines caused by months of incessant Russian assaults and the increasing use of strike drones to target Ukrainian logistics behind the frontline. They add that this has been exacerbated by a manpower shortage that has left depleted holdouts.
"The situation unfolding in the Donetsk region is the result of actions or inaction that have been constantly warned about ... for a year and a half," said Taras Chmut, founder of Come Back Alive, one of the largest Ukrainian charities providing weapons to the military.
Bohdan Krotevych, former chief of staff of the Azov brigade and a National Guard lieutenant colonel, made a public appeal to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
"Mr President, I sincerely don't know what exactly is being reported to you, but I'm informing you: on the Pokrovsk-Kostyantynivka line, without exaggeration, it's complete chaos," he wrote on social media. "A stable line of combat contact, as such, effectively doesn't exist."
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