Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on August 14, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 22, 2026
Add as preferred source on GoogleUkraine stabilizes its eastern front after Russian advances near Dobropillia, with Azov Corps playing a key role.
KYIV (Reuters) -Ukrainian troops have stabilised the battlefield in an area of eastern Ukraine where Russian forces had made a sudden push this week to pierce Ukrainian defences, the regional governor said on Thursday.
Ukraine said small groups of Russian infantry had thrust some 10 kilometres (six miles) toward its main defensive line near the town of Dobropillia, raising fears of a wider breakthrough that would further threaten key cities.
The advance, just days before Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin were due to meet in Alaska, appeared aimed at pressuring Kyiv to give up land in pursuit of peace three-and-a-half years into Russia's invasion of its neighbour.
"The situation in the Dobropillia sector has stabilised," Vadym Filashkin, governor of the embattled Donetsk region, wrote the Telegram messaging app. "Thanks to the heroic efforts of our Defence Forces, the front line is reliably holding."
Kyiv's military, which has played down the scale of the Russian thrust, had dispatched extra forces to the area including units of the battle-hardened Azov Corps.
General Staff spokesperson Andriy Kovalyov, in comments to the Interfax Ukraine news agency, echoed Filashkin's statement and credited Azov forces with inflicting heavy enemy casualties.
The Russian thrust had also fuelled criticism of Ukraine's military high command.
Defence analyst Konrad Muzyka wrote on X that Russian forces had made "minimal gains" in the area on Wednesday but had inched forward further south, near the strategic city of Pokrovsk.
(Reporting by Yuliia Dysa; writing by Dan Peleschuk; editing by Mark Heinrich)
Russian forces made a sudden push toward Ukraine's main defensive line near Dobropillia, advancing approximately 10 kilometers.
Ukrainian officials, including the governor of Donetsk, stated that the situation in the Dobropillia sector has stabilized due to the efforts of their Defence Forces.
The Ukrainian military dispatched extra forces, including units of the battle-hardened Azov Corps, to the area to reinforce defenses and inflict heavy casualties on Russian forces.
Defence analyst Konrad Muzyka noted that Russian forces had made minimal gains and criticized the Ukrainian military high command in light of the recent thrust.
The advance by Russian forces occurred just days before a scheduled meeting between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in Alaska, which may influence the situation further.
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