Russia plans to seize the entire Donetsk region by the end of 2026. However, Ukrainian military officials consider this goal unlikely due to challenges on the front lines.
RBC-Ukraine reported this, citing sources in military circles.
Donetsk remains a key target
Donetsk is the primary objective for Russian forces. Moscow hopes to reach the administrative borders of the region by year-end, but Ukrainian commanders doubt the feasibility of this plan.
One challenge for the offensive is distorted reporting from the front. Russian commanders sometimes claim to capture settlements located tens of kilometers away from active combat zones.
Ukrainian forces have strengthened aerial reconnaissance and track enemy movements both at the front and behind lines. As a result, Russian troops rely on small-unit tactics instead of large-scale assaults, slowing their advance and making breakthroughs more difficult.
Ukrainian intelligence confirms that Moscow aims to control both Donetsk and Luhansk and establish a “control zone” along the northern border, stretching from Chernihiv to Kharkiv.
Context
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported that Moscow allegedly told the US it intended to capture Donetsk within two months and then alter conditions for a peace agreement.
Zelenskyy also reiterated that Ukrainian forces will not abandon Donbas or the roughly 200,000 civilians living there, as Russia demands.
Previously The Ukrainian Review reported on the implications for Ukraine if it were to lose full control of Donbas.
