Breakthrough of the Russian military on the eastern front in Ukraine has caused a wave of confusion in Kyiv ahead of a meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, fueling speculation that the Kremlin leader will try to squeeze more concessions from Ukraine as part of a possible peace deal.

IN Financial Times found out how critical the situation on the front is for Ukraine. To do this, the journalists learned the opinions of analysts and analyzed the latest statements of the Ukrainian military command.

Did the Russians succeed at the front?

The publication recalled that Ukrainian and Western military analysts said that over the past few days, Russian troops have advanced almost 15 km along a narrow corridor parallel to Dobropilly in Donetsk Oblast. At the same time, the Russians have almost completely surrounded Pokrovsk.

Journalists stressed that the Russian breakthrough threatens to cut the important road connecting Dobropillya with Kramatorsk. This could lead to the occupiers being able to bypass the defense line built by the Ukrainian military in recent months.

The publication noted that this is one of Russia's most significant achievements in the past year. Moreover, it comes at a dangerous moment for Ukraine, whose army is experiencing a shortage of personnel and ammunition.

In addition, the US continues to pressure Ukraine, demanding concessions to reach a peace deal. Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed concerns that Putin could use his meeting with Trump to strengthen his military momentum.

"The situation is quite chaotic: the enemy is advancing deep into our territory, having discovered gaps in the defense, and then strengthening its positions and gathering strength for new offensives," says one of the recent statements by the Ukrainian monitoring project DeepState.

Ukraine denies Russian breakthrough on the front

The publication recalled that earlier the command of the operational-strategic grouping of troops"Dnipro" denied information about the Russian breakthrough, emphasizing that the enemy only managed to break through the first line of defense of the Ukrainian military.

"Of course, the situation remains difficult, and the fighting in this region is the most intense compared to other areas of the front," the Dnipro Military District added.

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine also did not confirm the information about the Russian breakthrough on the eastern front line. However, the General Staff said that by decision of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Oleksandr Syrsky, additional forces and resources are being transferred to the Dobropil and Pokrovsky directions.

According to Ukrainian soldiers and military analysts, the reality turned out to be much harsher than predicted.

"The recent Russian tactical breakthrough north of Pokrovsk is not unexpected, given the lack of cohesive defense lines, and could lead to further deterioration of the situation," Mike Kofman, a military analyst and senior fellow in the Russia and Eurasia Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, told reporters.

The head of the"Return Alive" charitable foundation, Taras Chmut, previously emphasized that the situation in the Donetsk region is the result of actions or inaction, which have been constantly discussed for a year and a half.

The publication added that some analysts believe that the situation can be explained not by Russia's new tactics, but by the insufficient number of Ukrainian defense lines. In particular, Ukrainian serviceman and military blogger Stanislav Bunyatov stated that"the entire defense line is like a sieve."

Russian breakthrough on the eastern front line - important news

Earlier, the founder of the charitable organization"Reactive Mail", military expert Pavlo Narozhnyi, stated that Russian occupiers managed to infiltrate north of Pokrovsk , having found a weak spot in the Ukrainian defense. According to him, the development of events is very unpleasant for Ukraine.

In addition, the spokesman for the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Major Andriy Kovalev, in a comment to UNIAN, reported that in the Pokrov direction, the occupiers are trying to infiltrate in small groups through the first line of positions of the Ukrainian troops. He noted that the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Oleksandr Syrskyi instructed to allocate additional forces and resources to the Dobropil and Pokrovsky directions.