Summer is the main fighting season in Ukraine, and as it slowly wanes, it is worth doing a tour of the battlefield to assess the situation.

Overall, the situation remains relatively the same. The Russian forces continue to be on the offensive, but they lack the requisite combat power to breach the Ukrainian defenses and achieve an operational breakthrough. On the other end, the Ukrainians are holding fast across the contact line, building their combat capability for a future large-scale counteroffensive.

A Tour of the Battlefield

In the east, the situation remains largely stagnant, with small-scale action on both sides.

“Positional engagements continued in northern Kharkiv Oblast on August 5, but there were no confirmed changes to the frontline,” the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) assessed in its latest operational estimate.

There is active fighting north and northeast of Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city in eastern Ukraine. The Russian forces maintain two pockets in the area, but they don’t present a serious threat to Kharkiv.

In May, the Russian forces tried to capture the city, launching a large-scale offensive. However, the Ukrainian defenses held, and the Russian forces lost much of their tactical gains to subsequent Ukrainian counterattacks. Moreover, the Russian military lost over 40,000 men in the operation.

The Donbas remains the center of fighting.

“Russian forces continued ground attacks along the Kupyansk-Svatove-Kreminna line on August 5 but did not make any confirmed advances. A Russian military blogger claimed that Russian forces seized several Ukrainian strongholds along the Berestove-Pishchane line (southeast of Kupyansk), although ISW has not observed visual confirmation of this claim,” the Institute for the Study of War stated.

The Russian forces continued with their small-scale offensive operations in the direction of Siversk and Chasiv Yar but without any significant success or confirmed advances.

However, in the direction of Toretsk in the southern part of the Donbas, the Russian forces have had more success, making significant tactical advances.

“Russian forces reportedly continue to advance east of Pokrovsk on August 5, and Russian sources claimed that Russian forces are closer to completing a tactical encirclement of Ukrainian forces near the T-0511 (O-054) road southeast of Pokrovsk,” the Institute for the Study of War estimated.

The Ukrainian forces usually won’t retreat until they have to, falling back to better-defended positions.

In the southern part of Ukraine, the Russian forces have made some small gains around Robotyne, in the western part of the Zaporizhzhia Oblast. Last year, the Ukrainian military launched its promising large-scale counteroffensive in the area. However, the Russian forces were well-entrenched and managed to absorb most of the Ukrainian offensive push.

Russian Casualties in Ukraine: An Update 

Meanwhile, the Russian forces continue to take serious losses on a daily basis. According to the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, over the past twenty-four hours, the Kremlin lost approximately 1,050 men killed, wounded, or captured, as well as fifty-four tactical vehicles and fuel trucks, thirty-nine artillery pieces and multiple launch rocket systems, thirty-six unmanned aerial systems, eight infantry fighting vehicles and armored personnel carriers, six cruise missiles, four main battle tanks, and one piece of special equipment.

About the Author: 

Stavros Atlamazoglou is a seasoned defense journalist specializing in special operations and a Hellenic Army veteran (national service with the 575th Marine Battalion and Army HQ). He holds a BA from Johns Hopkins University and an MA from Johns Hopkins’ School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). His work has been featured in Business Insider, Sandboxx, and SOFREP.

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