Russia’s war on Ukraine. 26.12.25
Operational situation
On the Northern Slobozhansky Direction, up to a company of enemy troops is entrenching in Hrabovske. Russian forces attacked near Oleksiivka, Andriivka, and Yunakivka.
On the Southern Slobozhansky direction, Russian forces fought for Prylipka, attempted to advance in Vovchansk, and attacked near Vovchanski Khutory, Starytsia, Milove, Hryhorivka, and Dvorichanske.
On the Kupyansk direction, Russian forces attacked near Kupyansk, Petropavlivka, Pishchane, Stepova Novoselivka, Kruhlyakivka, Bohuslavka, and Kopanky.
On the Lyman direction, Russian forces attacked in and near Lyman, near Shandryholove, Yarova, Novoselivka, Drobysheve, Sosnove, Stavky, Kolodyazi, and Zarichne.
On the Sloviansk direction, Russian forces attacked near Dronivka, Zakitne, Ozerne, and Pazeno.
On the Kostyantynivka direction, elements of the enemy 70th Motorized Rifle Division, reinforced by mobilization reserve formations, unsuccessfully attack toward Virolyubivka while simultaneously attempting to entrench along the Mayske–Markove line; they periodically conduct assault actions within Chasiv Yar itself, attempting to bypass from the north the Shevchenko–Workshop No. 2–Zemlyanky–Pivdennyi area held by the 24th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade of Ukrainian Defense Forces. South of the Kostyantynivka–Bakhmut road, troops of the 3rd Army Corps reached the Stupochky–Predtechyne line and entrenched there. The 4th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade and part of the forces of the 3rd Army Corps seized several dominant heights southeast of Kostyantynivka, enabling small assault groups to entrench on the southeastern outskirts of Kostyantynivka while advancing from the Oleksandro-Shultyne–Kostyantynivka direction. In the Pleshchiivka area, at the eastern and western ends of the Kleban-Byk reservoir in the Yablunivka–Berestok and Pleshchiivka–Ivanopillya directions, troops of the enemy 8th Combined Arms Army, supported by elements of the 3rd Army Corps, attempt to break through to the southern outskirts of Kostyantynivka and have entrenched in Pleshchiivka.
On the Pokrovsk direction, Russian forces attacked near and within Pokrovsk and Myrnohrad, as well as near Nove Shakhove, Ivanivka, Zaporizhzhia, Rodynske, Chervonyi Lyman, Sukhetske, Zatyshok, Kotlyne, Udachne, and Molodetske.
On the Oleksandrivka direction, Russian forces attacked near Novoserhiyivka, Horikhove, Dachne, Filiya, Sosnivka, and Oleksandrohrad.
On the Huliaypole Direction, Russian forces attacked near Huliaypole, Zlahoda, Solodke, Krasnohirske, Rybne, Pryvilne, Dobropillya, Andriivka, and Herasymivka, and advanced toward Bratske, Ternuvate, and Kosivtseve.
On the Orikhiv direction, Russian forces attacked near Mala Tokmachka, Stepove, Stepnohirsk, Prymorske, and Lukyanivske.
On the Prydniprovske Direction, Russian forces attacked toward the Antonivskyi Bridge.
General conclusion:
Ukrainian Defense Forces assess the situation in Huliaypole, Lyman, and Siversk as an operational-scale crisis, while on the Kostyantynivka direction, the situation is described as difficult.
In the Chasiv Yar area, the enemy is bogged down in urban combat; however, south and southwest of the Kostyantynivka defense area of Ukrainian Defense Forces, it is slowly advancing with heavy losses, pushing Defense Forces units out of their positions on the outskirts of the city.
The 3rd Army Corps does not demonstrate tactical proficiency and has suffered excessive losses in the battles for Bakhmut, Chasiv Yar, on the Siverskyi Donets–Donbas Canal, and in the areas of Andriivka and Klishchiivka. This fully applies to the level of combat effectiveness of the 70th Motorized Rifle Division of the 18th Combined Arms Army, which suffered excessive losses during fighting against Ukrainian marine infantry in the area of the village of Krynky in Kherson Oblast.
A significant number of mobilization reserve formations have been incorporated into the forces of the 3rd Army Corps and the 8th Combined Arms Army, including separate motorized rifle (rifle) regiments and battalions, manned predominantly by residents of the occupied part of Donbas.
Advancing along both banks of the Kazennyi Torets River, the enemy has seized Volodymyrivka and Shakhove, has begun fighting for Sofiivka, and has advanced in the direction of Rusyn Yar – Novopavlivka. Forward enemy units attack from the directions of Shakhove and Poltavka, attempting to break through via Sofiivka.
The breakthrough of assault groups of the 4th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade directly to Kostyantynivka, and the offensive of marine infantry and forces of the 8th Combined Arms Army from Shakhove and Poltavka to the northeast, significantly complicate the further defense of Kostyantynivka.
Enemy offensive actions on the left flank of the 8th Combined Arms Army had a negative impact on the position of Ukrainian Defense Forces, allowed the enemy 51st Combined Arms Army to significantly increase the stability of its bridgehead west of the Kazennyi Torets River and to conduct further actions.
Supporting operation:
Ukrainian Defense Forces conducted UAV strikes against the Lukoil-Volgograd Refinery in Volgograd, the Temriuk seaport, and a military airfield in the Maikop area of the Republic of Adygea, as well as a Storm Shadow missile strike against the Novoshakhtynsk Oil Refinery in Rostov Oblast.
A collection point for damaged vehicles of the 143rd Motorized Rifle Regiment of the 127th Motorized Rifle Division of the 5th Combined Arms Army was struck near Truzhenka, Donetsk Oblast.
According to clarified results of previous UAV strikes on the Belbek airfield in Crimea, the destruction of a 96K6 radar was confirmed, an R-419 tropospheric communications station was destroyed, and a 55Zh6T radar was damaged.
Change in the line of contact (LoC), directions of attacks and counterattacks:
There were 121 combat engagements on various fronts.
On the Northern Slobozhansky and Kursk directions, an enemy attack was repelled.
On the Southern Slobozhansky and Kursk directions, the enemy attempted to breach Ukrainian defensive lines seven times in the areas of Vovchansk and Dvorichanske and toward Vilcha.
On the Kupyansk Direction, an enemy attack occurred toward Hlushkivka.
On the Lyman direction, the enemy conducted nine attacks, attempting to penetrate Ukrainian defenses in the areas of Novoselivka, Stavky, Novoserhiyivka, and toward Ozerne and Zarichne.
On the Sloviansk direction, five enemy attempts to advance were halted in the areas of Siversk and Serebrianka.
On the Kostyantynivka direction, the enemy conducted 16 attacks near Novomarkove, Kostyantynivka, Oleksandro-Shultyne, Pleshchiivka, Kleban-Byk, Shcherbynivka, and Sofiivka.
On the Pokrovsk direction, 28 enemy assault actions were halted near Chervonyi Lyman, Rodynske, Myrnohrad, Leontovychi, Kotlyne, Molodetske, Filiya, Dachne, and Hryshyne, as well as toward Novopavlivka, Nove Shakhove, Kucheriv Yar, and Novoekonomichne.
On the Oleksandrivka direction, the enemy conducted 15 attacks in the areas of Pryvilne, Rybne, Krasnohirske, Zelenyi Hai, Vorone, Yalta, and Oleksandrohrad, and toward Iskra, Vyshneve, and Yehorivka.
On the Huliaypole Direction, seven enemy attacks occurred in the areas of Uspenivka and Huliaypole and toward Dobropillya.
On the Orikhiv Direction, an enemy attack was repelled near Pavlivka.
On the Prydniprovske Direction, Ukrainian Defense Forces repelled two enemy attacks toward the Antonivskyi Bridge.
Changes in the enemy disposition:
On the Kostyantynivka Direction, forces of the enemy “Yug (South)” Operational Grouping predominantly operate, including the 3rd and 8th Combined Arms Armies, the 3rd Army Corps, elements of the 70th Motorized Rifle Division of the 18th Combined Arms Army of the “Dnepr” Operational Grouping, the 336th and 40th Separate Marine Brigades, and the 177th Separate Marine Regiment. Part of the forces of the 3rd Combined Arms Army is advancing in the direction of Kostyantynivka, including the 4th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade and elements of the 123rd, 85th, and 88th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigades, while its main forces are advancing on the Sloviansk Direction, attempting to break through to the near approaches to the city. The main strike against the Defense Forces’ Kostyantynivka–Druzhkivka defense area is being delivered by the 3rd Army Corps, the 8th Combined Arms Army, and the grouping of marine infantry. The 3rd Army Corps (the 6th Motorized Rifle Division and the 72nd Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade), reinforced by the 70th Motorized Rifle Division and the 4th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade, is advancing on Kostyantynivka from the directions of Chasiv Yar and Toretsk. The total strength of the enemy grouping on the Kostyantynivka Direction is estimated at 80–90 thousand servicemen, of whom 10–12 thousand are allocated to reserve.
Possible operation situation developments:
On the Southern Slobozhanske Direction, the enemy will attempt to complete the occupation of Vovchansk, completely push units of Ukrainian Defense Forces out of the southern part of the city, attempt to break through in the area of Tsehelne toward the Vovchansk–Staryi Saltiv road and the highway to Rubizhne with the forces of a tactical grouping formed from elements of the 6th Combined Arms Army, the 11th and the 44th Army Corps. All of this will significantly slow the advance of the troops toward Bilyi Kolodyaz and southward along the eastern bank of the Siverskyi Donets, in the direction of Verkhnya Pysarivka and Buhayivka.
On the Kupyansk Direction, the enemy will hold its bridgehead in the Dvorichna and simultaneously will develop an offensive by the 47th Tank Division of the 1st Tank Army east of the city. The troops of the 6th Combined Arms Army will envelop the defense area of the 16th Army Corps of Ukrainian Defense Forces near Kolodyazne, will attack in the Milove – Ambarne and Krasne Pershe – Novovasylivka Directions, and will break through in the Dvorichna – Ridkodub Direction from the bridgehead on the Oskil River. An advance of the army in the Velykyi Burluk Direction in the near term is possible with minimal chances of operational success and only on the condition of introducing the operational reserve of the enemy “Sever (North)” Operational Grouping (likely the troops of the 14th Army Corps) into the operation or regrouping the 68th Motorized Rifle Division from the Kupyansk Direction to the Velykyi Burluk Direction. The development of the tactical success of Ukrainian Defense Forces in Myrne, Radkivka, and Sobolivka worsens the situation for the troops of the enemy “Zapad (West)” Operational Grouping in this area.
The defeat of the enemy “Zapad (West)” Operational Grouping in Kupyansk complicates and delays the seizure of the Sloviansk–Kramatorsk agglomeration. The successes of Ukrainian Defense Forces on the Kupyansk Direction will not allow Russian forces to exploit the advance of the troops of the 25th Combined Arms Army near Lyman and the 3rd Combined Arms Army near Siversk, thereby slowing the movement toward Sloviansk. Enemy forces will need to force the Siverskyi Donets River in the Lyman Direction to reach Sloviansk and secure their flanks against a possible counterstrike by Ukrainian Defense Forces from the Izium area. Russian forces are unable to develop an offensive toward Sloviansk from the Siversk Direction, as they do not have a sufficient number of troops there to conduct a frontal assault on the city.
On the Lyman Direction, the enemy’s 20th Combined Arms Army will attempt to seize the Yarova – Novoselivka – Drobysheve – Pryshyb area and block the Lyman – Izium logistics route along the northern bank of the Siverskyi Donets River. The 25th Combined Arms Army will continue its offensive east and southeast of Lyman in order to reach the Dibrova – Ozerne line and create a favorable initial position for an assault on Lyman from the south and southeast and will attempt to seize Zakitne and consolidate on the dominant heights. In addition, through actions on this Direction, the enemy seeks to support the 3rd Combined Arms Army, which is advancing toward Sloviansk along the southern bank of the Siverskyi Donets River. The troops of the 20th and 25th Combined Arms Armies will advance north and east of Lyman with the aim of isolating the defense area of the 3rd Army Corps of the Ukrainian Defense Forces around the city from the north and northwest, in order to reach the Siverskyi Donets River south of the city on the Raihorodok – Zakitne sector.
By maintaining control of a bridgehead on the Siverskyi Donets river, 3rd Army Corps of the Ukrainian Defense Forces will make it much more challenging for the enemy to launch an offensive towards Sloviansk from this direction.
On the Sloviansk Direction, the 3rd Combined Arms Army will attempt to break through from the Dronivka – Siversk line to the Zakitne – Riznykivka – Kalenyky – Kryva Luka area, facilitating the offensive on Lyman by the troops of the 25th Combined Arms Army. The advance of the 3rd Combined Arms Army along the southern bank of the Siverskyi Donets River in a westward direction will allow the command of the enemy “Zapad (West)” Operational Grouping not only to concentrate the main forces of the 20th and 25th Combined Arms Armies for the assault on Lyman without diverting them to block Defense Forces positions along the river, but also to ensure maneuver by troops within the zones of the 3rd, 20th, and 25th Combined Arms Armies across the Siverskyi Donets River outside the fire influence of Ukrainian Defense Forces.
Ukrainian Defense Forces will seek opportunities to slow the enemy advance along the southern bank of the Siverskyi Donets River toward Raihorodok and Sloviansk.
On the Kostyantynivka Direction, the enemy command will attempt to conduct a deep envelopment of Kostyantynivka from the north, east, and southeast and to break through from the southwest to the near approaches to Druzhkivka, that is, to enter the deep rear of the 19th Army Corps of Ukrainian Defense Forces defending in Kostyantynivka and to its south and southwest. Enemy troops will advance in the general direction of Volodymyrivka – Rayske to reach the near approaches to Druzhkivka and will attempt to break through from the east and northeast to the Bilokuzmynivka – Virolyubivka – Izhevka – Kurtivka area. Simultaneously, the enemy will conduct a frontal offensive within the defense zone of the 12th Azov Special Purpose Brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine. The troops of the enemy’s 3rd Army Corps will advance to the Novodmytrivka – Chervone line, collapsing the defense of the 24th Separate Mechanized Brigade of the 11th Army Corps of Ukrainian Defense Forces in Chasiv Yar by an offensive from the south. The aggressor will attack along both banks of the Kazennyi Torets River in the Sofiivka area, attempt to seize the village, and advance toward Novopavlivka and Torske.
On the Oleksandrivka and Huliaypole Directions, the enemy’s “Vostok (East)” Operational Grouping will attempt to envelop the Huliaypole defensive area of Ukrainian Defense Forces from the north, block its main lines of communication, reach the Huliaypole–Pokrovske road on the Dobropillya–Varvarivka section, reach the Khaychur River, force it in the Danylivka–Dobropillya area, and encircle Huliaypole from the northwest. Forces of the 36th Combined Arms Army and elements of the right flank of the 5th Combined Arms Army will attempt to break through toward Pokrovske from the southeast.
On the Orikhiv Direction, the enemy will try to break through toward Novomykolayivka to bypass the Orikhiv defensive area of Ukrainian Defense Forces from the north. The enemy “Vostok (East)” Operational Grouping will attempt to collapse the defense of the Armed Forces of Ukraine southeast of Zaporizhzhia and break through to its near approaches, advancing along the Donetsk–Zaporizhzhia highway. Simultaneously, acting from the south, the enemy’s “Dnepr” Operational Grouping will attempt to break through from the Plavni–Kamianske line along the left bank of the Dnipro River toward Stepnohirsk, and from the Stepove–Mali Shcherbaky line in the northern direction with the aim of reaching the near approaches to the city of Zaporizhzhia.
On the Prydniprovske direction, the command of the enemy’s “Dnepr” Operational Grouping will continue trying to take control of most of the island zone in the Dnipro delta in the direction of Kherson, will try to create a tactical bridgehead on the right bank, and to eliminate the tactical bridgeheads of the 30th Marine Corps of Ukrainian Defense Forces in the area of the automobile and railway bridges near Antonivka.
Russian operational losses from 24.02.22 to 26.12.25
Personnel - almost 1,202 070 (+840);
Tanks – 11,459 (+3);
Armored combat vehicles ‒ 23,804 (+3);
Artillery systems – 35,509 (+74);
Multiple rocket launchers (MLRS) – 1,579 (0);
Anti-aircraft warfare systems – 1,264 (+1);
Vehicles and fuel tanks – 71,454 (+180);
Aircraft - 434 (0);
Helicopters – 347 (0);
UAV operational and tactical level – 95,334 (+537);
Intercepted cruise and other missiles – 4,107 (0);
Boats/ships – 30 (0).
Humanitarian + general:
On the night of 26 December, Russian forces attacked Ukraine with an Iskander-M ballistic missile and 99 UAVs of the Shahed, Gerbera, and other models. According to the Air Force, as of 09:00 Ukrainian air defense shot down or suppressed 73 enemy drones in the northern, southern, and eastern regions of the country. At the same time, impacts of a ballistic missile and 26 strike UAVs were recorded at 16 locations.
In Donetsk, Odesa, Mykolaiv, Kherson, and Kharkiv Oblasts, power outages occurred as a result of overnight enemy shelling of generation facilities and electricity transmission and distribution networks.
During the night of 26 December, Russians attacked a DTEK energy facility in the south of Odesa Oblast. It is noted that the damage is significant.
As a result of an attack by combat drones, infrastructure of the Lviv Railway at Kovel station was damaged. The strike damaged a locomotive and a freight car, and the blast wave blew out windows in the locomotive depot workshop.
On 26 December, Russian aviation carried out a strike with a guided aerial bomb on a private house in Zaporizhzhia District. According to the head of the Zaporizhzhia Oblast Military Administration, Ivan Fedorov, one person was killed as a result of the attack and three more residents were wounded.
On 26 December at around 11:00 a.m., Russian occupiers attacked Uman in Cherkasy Oblast with a missile, the enemy strike injured six people, including two children. There is damage to residential infrastructure.
Russian forces struck the Shevchenkivskyi District of Kharkiv with a guided aerial bomb, hitting one of the busiest highways in the city. According to Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov, as a result of the impact, vehicles with people inside caught fire, and windows were blown out in nearby buildings. As of 18:00, two residents were reported killed and eight wounded.
In Sumy, due to restrictions on electricity supply, a critical situation with heat supply developed, as reported by acting Mayor Artem Kobzar. Due to the lack of electricity, pumps and boiler houses are not operating, which makes it impossible to supply thermal energy to consumers. As a result, city residents were left without heating and faced the threat of hypothermia. Russian forces strike the city’s critical infrastructure almost daily. Over the past day, more than 60 shelling incidents were recorded in the Oblast.
During the day, Russian forces attacked the Nikopol, Synelnykove, and Kryvyi Rih Districts of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, as a result of which two civilians were injured. According to acting head of the Oblast Military Administration Vladyslav Haivanenko, the enemy shelled the Nikopol area with artillery and attacked with UAVs, damaging residential buildings, shops, and infrastructure; a 36-year-old woman was wounded. In the Synelnykove District, drone and guided aerial bomb strikes caused fires, destroyed private homes, and an 86-year-old woman was hospitalized in moderate condition.
On the evening of 25 December, the Russian army struck a critical infrastructure facility in Volyn Oblast. As a result of the attack, there were no fatalities or injuries.
On the evening of 25 December, Russian forces shelled Ochakiv in Mykolaiv Oblast, preliminarily using multiple launch rocket systems, which led to damage to 11 private houses and eight vehicles, with no casualties. At night, the enemy attacked Mykolaiv and its suburbs with several UAVs, likely of the Molniya type. As a result of the attack, some subscribers in Mykolaiv District were left without electricity, but as of 07:00 on 26 December almost all consumers had their power restored.