Putin claims battlefield encirclements the evidence doesn't support, while Russia's real offensive gains ground elsewhere
At a Bishkek press conference, Vladimir Putin claimed Ukrainian troops were encircled in Kharkiv region and that Sviatohirsk had fallen, but documented footage does not back these claims. Meanwhile, Russian forces are genuinely advancing faster on other sectors, including near Dobropillia and Orikhiv.
On September 1, Vladimir Putin used a late-night press conference in Bishkek to describe what he called an "objective" picture of the front, citing General Staff and other agency sources. He claimed several thousand Ukrainian troops were encircled near Vovchansk in the Kharkiv region and that Russian forces had captured Sviatohirsk near Sloviansk. The statements reportedly surprised even pro-Russian military commentators.
Kharkiv region
Russian units are indeed pushing toward Bilyi Kolodiaz from two directions, but recent video shows Russian positions still several kilometers away, while the eastern group has advanced no farther than Kupyne, 25 kilometers short of the target. An encirclement of an area that size has not occurred since May 2022, and Russia lacks sufficient forces in the sector. A claimed encirclement near Pisky-Radkivske appears even less plausible, given Ukraine's four-year-old bridgehead on the Oskil River there.
Sloviansk and Sviatohirsk
No Russian positions have been documented near Sviatohirsk in recent months, and Ukrainian forces have pushed back Russian incursions in nearby villages. Ukraine has managed to stop the Russian advance toward Sloviansk on the river's northern bank, though not on the southern bank.
Sloviansk, Kramatorsk, and Dobropillia
After taking most of Kostiantynivka, Russian forces could not push directly into the Kramatorsk-Sloviansk area, but their offensive on the Dobropillia-Druzhkivka flank has intensified sharply in recent weeks. Russian troops have captured several settlements and crossed the Kazennyi Torets River toward Druzhkivka. Ukrainian defenses along this stretch are described as being in a full-blown crisis requiring urgent reinforcement, similar to a year ago.
Orikhiv and Mala Tokmachka
In August, a Ukrainian breakthrough attempt near the Donetsk-Zaporizhzhia regional border was repelled by Russia's 90th Tank Division and 41st Combined Arms Army. At the same time, Russia's 42nd Motorized Rifle Division broke through the Novodanylivka-Mala Tokmachka line — something it had failed to do for two years — in just two weeks, reaching the outskirts of Orikhiv and cutting the road into the town.
