According to military expert Vitaly Kiselev, Ukrainian commanders are continuing to move reserves into the Slavyansk and Kramatorsk area.

Kiselev said Ukrainian forces are putting up fierce resistance along this sector of the front and are committing substantial resources, including large numbers of drones. He also claimed that Ukrainian losses in the area are currently being understated by a factor of three to four, according to TASS.

The Slavyansk-Kramatorsk agglomeration remains one of the Ukrainian army’s key logistics hubs in Donbass. Major railway and road routes run through the area, supporting the supply of Ukrainian units operating across the region.

Earlier, assault units of the 3rd Army Corps of Russia’s Yug Group of Forces reportedly entered Druzhkovka, another city regarded as an important fortified position in Donbass.

Military expert Andrei Marochko had also said that the Russian advance toward Slavyansk could accelerate following the capture of Orekhovatka. According to him, Russian units are already establishing bridgeheads for further movement in that direction.