Overview
- The Economist reports Ukrainian control of Pokrovsk is close to ending, calling the potential loss a serious setback for Kyiv at a key transport hub, while Russia’s Defense Ministry earlier said its units cleared 35 buildings there.
- Russian authorities say strikes in Ukraine’s Kharkiv region destroyed long‑range drone launch sites and a temporary base housing foreign fighters in Chuhuiv, with the claims attributed to security services and Defense Ministry reporting.
- Russia’s ‘Dnepr’ UAV units released footage and details of FPV and reconnaissance drone attacks in Zaporizhzhia that destroyed three transport vehicles with personnel and a ground robotic platform, and commanders reported similar drone hits near Kupyansk.
- Russian videos of captured Ukrainian soldiers describe shortages, encirclement near Yampol and alleged orders to monitor or shoot civilians on the Pokrovsk front; these accounts were published by Russia’s Defense Ministry and have not been independently verified.
- Reuters, citing sources and later confirmation by Ukraine’s General Staff, reports a Ukrainian drone attack halted operations at Lukoil’s Volgograd refinery after damage to a primary distillation unit and a hydrocracking unit.