The situation on the battlefield in eastern Ukraine remains critical, with the epicenter of clashes overnight at the strategic industrial center of Konstantinovka. Despite statements by the Russian military command earlier this month of a “complete takeover“ of the city, current data as of 6:00 a.m. Bulgarian time on July 10, 2026 show that the city is divided and bloody street fighting is taking place in it.
Neither Moscow nor Kiev in absolute control
According to a detailed analysis by the independent platform Meduza and reports from the field, the political declarations of the Kremlin are ahead of the real situation. The Russian army has indeed managed to make significant progress in recent weeks, capturing key sites, including the ballast plant near the railway line, which seriously hampers the supply of the defenders.
However, Ukrainian units have not completely withdrawn. Units of the Ukrainian Armed Forces continue to hold positions in both the central districts and the southern parts of the city, taking advantage of the fact that Russian flank attacks through Dolga Balka and Novodmitrovka have not yet managed to close a complete encirclement.
Ukraine's position
In its morning briefing, the Ukrainian Armed Forces General Staff reported intensive attacks along the entire eastern front, with the Konstantinovskoe direction remaining the hottest point. Over the past 24 hours, Ukrainian forces have repelled over 16 direct Russian assaults on the city itself and nearby approaches, and several large-scale battles continued into the pre-dawn hours. General Staff spokesman Major Andriy Kovalev confirmed that Russian infantry groups were penetrating the city area, but stressed that the Ukrainian Armed Forces were conducting counter-sabotage operations and the city had not fallen. President Volodymyr Zelensky categorically rejected Vladimir Putin's claims, calling them a "Kremlin media campaign to exert pressure."
Russia's position
For its part, the Russian Defense Ministry insists that the "cleansing" of Konstantinovka is in an advanced stage and the city has been placed under operational control. The Chief of the General Staff of Russia, Valery Gerasimov, reported that the capture of this “key defensive junction” of the fortified line Slavyansk-Kramatorsk-Konstantinovka is a strategic success for the Russian offensive in the Donetsk region. In recent hours, Russian artillery and aircraft have been carrying out massive strikes on the roads west of the city (in the direction of Druzhkivka), trying to completely isolate the battlefield.
Strategic importance
Konstantinovka, which had a pre-war population of nearly 78,000 people, is one of the last major Ukrainian bastions in the Donbass. The fall of the city would open a direct path for Russian forces to Kramatorsk and Slavyansk - Moscow's main political and military goals in the region. However, military experts point out that even if the Russian army completely breaks the resistance in Konstantinovka in the coming days, the destruction in the city and the need to regroup will delay any further advance north.