The Ukrainian Armed Forces have made a breakthrough in Donetsk Oblast, according to the ISW
Ukrainian defense forces recently advanced in the Donetsk region—in the area south of Dobropillia. At the same time, in the northern part of the Kharkiv region, Ukrainian troops carried out successful counterattacks, preventing Russian forces from advancing.
According to U.S. analysts, geolocated footage released on August 20 confirms the recent advance of Ukrainian forces in the northwestern part of Vodyanske, located south of Dobropillya.
“Geolocated video footage published on August 20 indicates that Ukrainian forces have recently advanced in the northwestern part of Vodyanske (south of Dobropillya),” the ISW noted.
At the same time, Russian military officials also claimed to have advanced in this sector of the front, but analysts found no independent confirmation of these claims.
However, the ISW confirms that Russian troops have recently advanced southwest of Pokrovsk.
Over the past two days, Russian forces have continued offensive operations in the north of the Kharkiv region.
However, according to the ISW’s assessment, the Russian army has not achieved any confirmed successes, while the Ukrainian Defense Forces have launched new counterattacks.
“Russian forces attacked in the Borova and Kupiansk sectors on August 20, when Ukrainian forces counterattacked north of Kupiansk, but the ISW found no evidence of Russian troop advances,” the report states.
The ISW also noted an increase in the intensity of Russian strikes in the Kupiansk area.
According to analysts, this may indicate that Russian forces are preparing for future ground attacks.
At the same time, Russian forces continue their information operations, in particular using videos altered with artificial intelligence to create false reports of alleged advances.
“Russian forces also continue to use AI-altered video footage to create false claims of advances,” ISW analysts warned.
This is stated in the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) report dated August 20.
Over the past 24 hours, Russian forces carried out 238 assaults, with the highest number of attacks recorded in the Pokrovsk and Kostiantynivka sectors. At the same time, 16 assaults took place in the Huliaipole sector, according to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in its morning briefing on August 21.
On the evening of August 20 and overnight on August 21, Russian forces attacked the Nikopol, Synelnykivka, and Pavlohrad districts of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast with drones. Local authorities reported on the consequences of the strikes.
On the night of August 20–21, Russian forces attacked the village of Lebyazhe in the Chuhuiv district with six strike UAVs. The strike killed two women and wounded two others; private homes were also damaged and destroyed.
On the night of August 21, Russia launched a massive drone strike on the Sumy region, targeting Sumy and Konotop. The shelling damaged residential buildings, and at least two people were injured.
