In August, the Defense Forces liberated more territory than the Russian Federation had seized, according to the ISW
The pace of the Russian troops’ advance in August 2026 increased slightly, but the occupying army was unable to carry out operational maneuvers or break through Ukrainian defenses. Russian territorial gains remain slow and limited.
According to analysts’ estimates, Russian forces occupied approximately 90.35 square kilometers of Ukrainian territory in August. On average, this amounted to 2.91 square kilometers per day.
If we take into account not only confirmed territorial gains but also Russian infiltrations, the total area where Russian forces advanced or infiltrated is estimated at approximately 123.53 square kilometers—an average of 3.98 square kilometers per day.
The Russians’ main territorial gains in August were concentrated in the area of the so-called “Fortress Belt” in Donetsk Oblast. At the same time, even there, the occupiers managed to achieve only limited tactical successes.
According to the ISW, Russian forces have still not completed the capture of Kostiantynivka, despite months of attempts to intensify infiltration and conduct urban combat.
“Russian forces maintain a presence (through advances or infiltration) in 72.23% of Kostiantynivka and have been unable to fully capture the town even after months of intensified infiltration and urban combat,” the report states.
At the same time, analysts emphasize that the pace of the Russian Federation’s offensive in August remains significantly lower than last year’s figures.
By comparison, in August 2025, Russian troops captured 505.55 square kilometers of Ukrainian territory.
“This indicates that the pace of Russian troop advances continues to slow,” the ISW noted.
Amid the Russian offensive, the Ukrainian Defense Forces continued counteroffensive operations in August, particularly in the Lyman and Oleksandrivka sectors.
According to ISW estimates, Ukrainian forces liberated at least 129.81 square kilometers of territory last month.
At the same time, analysts consider this figure a conservative estimate.
“This figure is likely conservative, as ISW’s methodology underestimates the scale of likely Ukrainian gains in the current counteroffensive in the Lyman direction, and additional data will likely reveal the full extent of Ukrainian gains in the Lyman direction in the fall of 2026,” the analysts explained.
In August, the Russian army suffered more than 40,000 casualties for the second month in a row.
According to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Russia lost 42,020 soldiers on the battlefield during August.
The ISW calculated that in August, the Russian army suffered an average of:
- 340 casualties per square kilometer of captured or infiltrated territory;
- 465 casualties per square kilometer of territory actually captured.
Analysts also note that the Russian system of manning the army with volunteers continues to face difficulties in recruiting enough soldiers to compensate for current losses.
At the same time, the situation in the Donbas remains difficult. Russian troops have advanced to within approximately 15 km of Druzhkivka.
The city is located on a key route connecting a number of strategic settlements that form Ukraine’s defensive belt in the Donbas.
Breaking through this line and subsequently capturing the Donbas remain among the Kremlin’s key objectives in the war against Ukraine.
It was also previously reported that, according to an assessment by one of Europe’s leading intelligence services, Russian troops could reach the outskirts of Kramatorsk and Sloviansk in early 2027.
Thus, despite isolated advances, Russia is not demonstrating the pace of an offensive necessary for a rapid breakthrough of Ukrainian defenses, while the Ukrainian Armed Forces continue to conduct counteroffensive operations on certain fronts.
This is stated in a report by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).
At the same time, Vladimir Putin claimed that Russian troops were allegedly 12 km away from the Sumy ring road and that Russia had captured Svyatogorsk in the Donetsk region. However, data from DeepState maps do not corroborate these claims.
Vladimir Putin called drones the main challenge of modern warfare for the Russian army. The Russian dictator emphasized the key role of drones in combat operations.
