By Daria Tarasova-Markina, Lauren Kent, CNN
Kyiv, Ukraine (CNN) — Russia is still inching forward in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk region, where it has concentrated the bulk of its troops, as it continues efforts to encircle the key “fortress belt” city of Kostyantynivka and the city of Lyman.
But outside experts and Ukrainian soldiers who spoke to CNN say Russia’s claims of advancement are exaggerated and come as the Kremlin is likely trying to project a narrative of success to counter the impact of recent Ukrainian strikes inside Russia.
Russian state media outlet TASS claimed on Monday that Russian forces had “gained full control” of Kostyantynivka’s eastern part and approached its northeastern outskirts.
In reality, parts of the city have become a contested “gray zone” – with neither side controlling them – according to the Washington-based think tank the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).
“These are infiltrations, these are not advances. These are groups of maybe one to two guys, Russian servicemen, entering some positions in the city… it’s not a consolidated position,” said ISW’s Russia team lead, Kateryna Stepanenko, who described the tactic as slow and grinding. “They still need quite a lot of time and quite a lot of resources to actually exploit that into consolidated positions.”
Ukrainian soldiers on the front line told CNN that the situation there is getting worse, although it is manageable and Russia’s movements are still extremely slow.
“The situation in the Kostyantynivka sector, particularly in Kostyantynivka itself, has been noticeably deteriorating in recent weeks,” Kostiantyn Melnykov, a press officer for Ukraine’s 24th Mechanized Brigade fighting in the nearby city of Chasiv Yar, told CNN on Tuesday. “The enemy is increasing the number of airstrikes in this sector.”
Russia’s aim is to seize all of Ukraine’s Donbas region, which contains the “fortress belt” of industrial cities, railways and roads that form the backbone of the country’s defense and supply the front line. That includes capturing Kostyantynivka and the surrounding settlements – something that appears to be Russia’s primary objective for now.
But Melnykov added that Ukrainian units in the area are killing Russian troops, destroying equipment and “holding back the enemy’s vastly superior forces.”
Russia’s strategy has been to send very small infantry groups – those who survive forward advances – to infiltrate the city. It’s the same tactic Moscow used to seize the Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk in early 2026, a battle that went on for months after Russian troops first infiltrated the city and was characterized by many premature declarations of capture.
In some instances, Ukrainian forces have seen a single Russian soldier advancing, according to Yuriy Madyar, the acting deputy commander of Ukraine’s 19th Army Corps, in an interview with the Ukrainian national broadcaster Suspilne last week.
CNN cannot independently verify the situation on the ground.
There are several reasons why Russia is intensifying its infiltration missions now. One Russian commander posted on Telegram on Tuesday that his forces were able to advance by using the cover of summer greenery. Good weather conditions also make it easier to fly drones – although that’s true for Ukraine as well.
And there are reports that the Kremlin has imposed a deadline of September for seizing the Donbas region, although ISW has assessed that Russia is unlikely to achieve that aim.
“Most importantly, they want to declare informational victories. The Russians are experiencing quite a lot of vulnerabilities right now,” Stepanenko said, citing Ukraine’s recent attacks on infrastructure in Russian-occupied Crimea, occupied Kherson and more. “Infiltrations are one of the ways that Russia gets to make these grandiose declarations of victories without actually fully achieving their goals.”
Elements of Russia’s claimed advancements are likely to be false, though. According to ISW, “Russian officials have recently intensified their campaign to use likely AI-altered footage to further their aggrandized claims of Russian successes near Ukraine’s Fortress Belt in Donetsk Oblast.”
For example, the Russian Ministry of Defense published a video of its troops raising a flag in Lyman, which ISW said it was unable to verify, adding that it “has reason to believe the footage may be AI-altered.”
In Lyman, Ukrainian forces are indeed seeing “a significant intensification of activity,” particularly north of the city, according to Ukrainian Armed Forces spokesperson Viktor Tregubov in an interview with local media. But Tregubov insisted that Ukrainian forces have been successful in pushing it back.
Following attacks on Russian logistic networks in the area, Tregubov told Suspilne that “it appears they (the Russians) are trying to achieve some results before the situation with logistics, including the supply of fuel and lubricants, begins to truly take its toll on them.”
Ukraine’s long-range strike campaign
Meanwhile, Kyiv has increased the intensity of its long-range drone strikes against large Russian cities.
In the early hours of Sunday into Monday, Ukraine struck the greater Moscow area for the third time in the past week.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday claimed that Ukrainian Armed Forces “are striking civilian infrastructure with drones in an attempt to destabilize Russian society,” according to TASS.
That comes after Ukraine hit an oil facility on the outskirts of Moscow last week – a large attack that Russian air defenses scrambled to respond to, and during which a Russian defense missile appeared to miss its target and inadvertently blow the lid off an oil storage tank.
Nonetheless, Putin still projected confidence about Russian’s war aims, adding, “We will get where we need to.”
‘Crimea will turn into an island’
Kyiv has also stepped up its targeting of sites in Crimea – the Ukrainian peninsula occupied by Russia since 2014 – in recent days, destroying a railway bridge spanning the North Crimean Canal and striking an oil depot overnight into Tuesday.
Power was knocked out in Crimea’s largest city, Sevastopol, on Wednesday following Ukrainian attacks on the main power substation, according to the Russia-appointed Sevastopol governor Mikhail Razvozhaev. Two people were injured in the overnight attacks, Razvozhaev said.
Local authorities in the Crimean Peninsula – a popular summer vacation destination for Russians – have cancelled children’s camps in recent days and called off all outdoor sport activities until further notice.
Over the weekend, authorities said four people were killed and 28 injured in Ukrainian drone attacks.
Ukraine’s navy claimed it struck several of the ferries used to transport Russian military equipment to the peninsula, taking them out of commission.
“Essentially, Crimea is being isolated by drones. And in the near future, it looks like Crimea will turn into an island,” Ukraine’s defense minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, warned in an interview with local media last week.
The-CNN-Wire™ & © 2026 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.
Victoria Butenko contributed to this report.
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