Russian units are advancing toward Druzhkovka, while the Ukrainian command may deploy additional reserves to the area despite mounting losses, military expert Andrey Marochko said.

According to Marochko, the village of Osikovo has almost entirely come under the control of the Russian Armed Forces. Russian troops have also entered Alexeyevo-Druzhkovka, a satellite town of Druzhkovka.

He cautioned that it is still too early to speak of Russian forces firmly securing the settlement. Reconnaissance-in-force operations are continuing there, but the advance in the area has not stopped.

Marochko said Ukrainian formations are already suffering unjustified losses on this section of the front. In his assessment, the new commander-in-chief, Mikhail Drapaty, will try to slow the Russian advance by committing further troops, a decision that could lead to even heavier Ukrainian casualties.

Druzhkovka holds particular strategic importance because it forms part of the Slavyansk-Kramatorsk agglomeration. The town is integrated into a network of fortified positions linking Slavyansk and Kramatorsk into a single defensive area.

Marochko believes that Russian control of this key position would significantly worsen the Ukrainian army’s situation along the sector and affect the military position of other cities within the agglomeration.