Russia advances in Ukraine, but experts say pace is limited
Russia continues to advance slowly into the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine, where it has concentrated most of its troops, while continuing efforts to encircle the city of Kostyantynivka, a key point in the so-called "fortress belt", and the city of Lyman.
However, Ukrainian soldiers and experts interviewed by CNN say that Russian claims of advance are exaggerated. According to them, the Kremlin is probably trying to project a success narrative to counter the impact of recent Ukrainian attacks on Russian territory.
Russian state news agency TASS claimed on Monday that the country's forces had "taken full control" of the eastern part of Kostyantynivka and approached its northeastern outskirts.
In reality, parts of the city have become a contested "gray zone" with no effective control by either side, according to the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank.
"These are infiltrations, not advances. These are groups of maybe one or two men - Russian military personnel - entering some positions in the city... it's not a consolidated position," said Kateryna Stepanenko, head of the Russia analysis team at ISW, describing the tactic as slow and exhausting.
"They still need a lot of time and a lot of resources to really turn this into consolidated positions," he added.
Ukrainian soldiers on the front line told CNN that the situation on the battlefield is worsening, although it is still manageable and Russia's movements remain extremely slow.
"The situation in the Kostyantynivka sector, particularly in Kostyantynivka itself, has been noticeably deteriorating in recent weeks," Kostiantyn Melnykov, press officer for Ukraine's 24th Mechanized Brigade, which fights in the nearby town of Chasiv Yar, told CNN on Tuesday.
"The enemy is increasing the number of air strikes in this sector", he commented.
Russia's objective is to seize the entire Ukrainian region of Donbas, which is home to the "fortress belt" made up of industrial cities, railways and roads, which forms the backbone of the country's defense and supplies the front line.
This includes the capture of Kostyantynivka and surrounding towns, something that appears to be the main Russian objective at the moment.
However, Melnykov added that Ukrainian units in the region are eliminating Russian troops, destroying equipment and "containing the enemy's forces, which are vastly superior."
Russia's strategy has been to send very small groups of infantry - those that survive the initial advances - to infiltrate the city.
It's the same tactic that Moscow used to seize the Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk in early 2026, a battle that dragged on for months after the initial infiltration of Russian troops and that was marked by many premature declarations of conquest.
In some cases, Ukrainian forces observed a single Russian soldier advancing, according to Yuriy Madyar, acting deputy commander of Ukraine's 19th Army Corps, in an interview with Ukrainian public broadcaster Suspilne last week.
CNN was unable to independently verify the situation on the ground.
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There are several reasons why Russia is stepping up its infiltration missions at this time. A Russian commander published on Telegram, on Tuesday (23), that his forces managed to advance taking advantage of the cover of summer vegetation. Good weather conditions also make it easier to operate drones - although this also applies to Ukraine.
There are reports that the Kremlin has set September as a deadline to seize the Donbas region, although the ISW assesses that Russia is unlikely to achieve this objective.
"The most important thing is that they want to announce victories in the field of information. The Russians face a lot of vulnerabilities right now," Stepanenko said, citing Ukraine's recent attacks on infrastructure in Russian-occupied Crimea, occupied Kherson and other areas.
"Infiltration is one of the ways in which Russia makes these grandiose declarations of victory without, in fact, fully achieving its objectives," he said.
However, elements of Russia's claimed advances are likely to be false. According to ISW, "Russian authorities have recently intensified their campaign to use images - likely altered by AI - to reinforce their exaggerated claims of Russian successes near Ukraine's 'Fortress Belt' in the Donetsk region."
For example, the Russian Defense Ministry released a video of its troops raising a flag in Lyman - something ISW said it was unable to verify, adding that it "has reason to believe the footage may have been altered by artificial intelligence."
In Lyman, Ukrainian forces are, in fact, observing "a significant intensification of activity", especially north of the city, according to Ukrainian Armed Forces spokesman Viktor Tregubov in an interview with local press. However, Tregubov stressed that Ukrainian forces have managed to repel these attacks.
Following attacks on Russian logistics networks in the region, Tregubov told Suspilne that "it looks like they (the Russians) are trying to get some result before the logistical situation - including the supply of fuels and lubricants - starts to really weigh on them."
Ukraine's long-range strike campaign
Meanwhile, Kiev has stepped up long-range drone strikes against major Russian cities.
In the early hours of Sunday to Monday (22), Ukraine attacked the Moscow metropolitan region for the third time in the last week.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that the Ukrainian Armed Forces "are attacking civilian infrastructure with drones in an attempt to destabilize Russian society", according to the TASS agency.
The statement comes after Ukraine struck an oil facility on the outskirts of Moscow last week - a major attack to which Russian air defenses attempted to respond and during which a Russian defense missile apparently missed its target, inadvertently blowing off the lid of an oil storage tank.
However, Putin still expressed confidence about Russia's war aims, adding: "We will get where we need to go."
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Source: CNN