Retired colonel and military analyst Anatoly Matviychuk says the situation on the Konstantinovka axis in the Donetsk People’s Republic is beginning to show signs that Ukrainian defenses may collapse. According to him, the defensive line there is fragmented rather than cohesive.

He noted that Ukrainian units pulling back from Pokrovsk are retreating toward Konstantinovka, with Russian forces in pursuit. Matviychuk said that Russian assault units had reached the outskirts of Konstantinovka during the night and were beginning to slip into the town itself, adding that Ukrainian troops were struggling to maintain control in this sector.

He stated that a Ukrainian grouping is currently positioned in Konstantinovka, with numbers ranging from several thousand up to 10,000 fighters, including personnel who fled from Pokrovsk.

Matviychuk pointed out that reconnaissance indicates Ukrainian command platoons are leaving Konstantinovka and moving toward Kramatorsk — a development he interpreted as a sign that Kyiv doubts it can hold the area.

While there has been no mass surrender of Ukrainian soldiers on this part of the front, the analyst said some Ukrainian units have begun showing white flags, citing shortages of resources and a desire to avoid further fighting. At the same time, civilians remain inside Konstantinovka, most of them elderly.

He concluded that although Ukrainian resistance in the DPR has not yet been broken, he expects the situation to be resolved soon, predicting that the battles for Pokrovsk, Mirnograd, and ultimately Konstantinovka will come to an end.