Putin's Army Is Still Taking Large Chunks Of Ukraine's Land, UK Says

Russian President Vladimir PutinVladimir Putin’s army has been taking large areas of Ukrainian land over the last two months, UK intelligence has revealed.US president Donald Trump has announced that he intends to hold face-to-face peace talks with his Russian counterpart in Alaska next Friday, and has warned that any deal to end the Ukraine war may involve a land swap.Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy has rejected that idea outright.Meanwhile, Russian forces are still gaining more territory in eastern Ukraine, according to the latest update from the UK’s Ministry of Defence (MoD).“Russian Ground Forces (RGF) highly likely seized approximately 500-550 sq km of Ukrainian territory in July 2025,” the intelligence officials said on X.“RGF seized a similar amount of Ukrainian territory in June 2025, following month on month increases from March 2025.“The RGF continued to make tactical advances in Donetsk oblast, primarily to the north-east and south-west of Pokrovsk.”Putin’s ground forces have now occupied nearly all of the Donetsk oblast territory south from Pokrovsk.Russia controls approximately 20% of Ukrainian land.However, the UK noted that Russian forces have not made “any observable gains in the Ukrainian oblast of Sumy” which is near the border between the two countries – and this may be due in part to rebellious troops.The update pointed to recent reporting which suggests elements of Russia’s 51st Airborne Regiment “are refusing to follow orders”, having previously complained against “commanders ordering casualty-heavy infantry assaults”.Putin has been pushing his troops forward consistently for the last three years, at an astonishing attrition rate.Russia is estimated to have endured more than a million casualties since Putin invaded Ukraine back in February 2022.“Continued losses and Ukrainian counterattacks have likely frustrated Russian intent to establish a buffer zone in the Sumy region,” the MoD noted.The update also suggested Ukrainian troops were still conducting limited operations in Russia’s Kursk region, more than year after the troops launched a surprise incursion.Even so, Russia’s continued success in taking Ukrainian land will likely give Putin the upper hand in his negotiations with Trump – and could mean there’s little reason for him to actually stop his grinding land grab.Latest Defence Intelligence update on the situation in Ukraine - 09 August 2025.Find out more about Defence Intelligence's use of language: https://t.co/4cyLDflF1M#StandWithUkrainepic.twitter.com/q1jInPbOh7— Ministry of Defence 🇬🇧 (@DefenceHQ) August 9, 2025Related...Trump Eases Up On Vladimir Putin By Offering The Russian Dictator 1 Major ConcessionTrump Has A New Tactic To Stop The Ukraine War – Going After Russia's AlliesPutin Is Tightening His Grip On Russia's Internet With Dramatic New Tactic, UK Says

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