Russian Forces Continue to Experiment with New Technologies and Innovations to Restore Mechanized Maneuvering at a Tactical Level and Exit Positional Warfare in Ukraine.
Russia Attempts to Stop Grain Exports Through Odessa by Sea and Land.
Ukraine Has Managed to Advance in the Direction of Kupyansk and Borova Against Russian Occupiers.
These Are the Main Conclusions of the Daily Report of the Institute for the Study of War on the Situation on the Front in Ukraine.
Russian Forces Are Experimenting with Equipping Tanks with Modernized Active Protection Systems (APS).
These Are Systems That Provide Kinetic Protection of vehicles from attacking strikes — in order to increase the survivability of tanks against Ukrainian drones.
A Ukrainian FPV drone footage from August 7 shows Ukrainian FPV drones hitting a Russian T-72B3M tank equipped with the "Arena-M" active protection system, whose ammunition was likely depleted, near the occupied village of Volodymyrka, located east of Dobropilya.
Russian forces previously conducted a significantly reduced company-sized mechanized attack in the direction of Dobropilya, one of Russia's priority sectors, with between seven and nine tanks and two armored fighting vehicles in late July 2026.
Ukrainian forces then destroyed at least one T-72B3A tank equipped with the "Arena-M" active protection system.
The footage released on August 7 is likely from the mechanized attack in July. Russian engineers originally designed the Arena-M system to protect armored vehicles from approaching missiles, rockets, and high-explosive anti-tank shells at close range, intercepting them with counter-projectiles, but Russian forces are reportedly developing and fielding an "anti-drone" capability to intercept approaching FPV drones by 2025.
On August 9, Ukrainian sources reported that an Arena-M system mounted on a Russian tank had shot down seven Ukrainian FPV drones during a Russian mechanized attack.
This brought the number of FPV drones needed by Ukrainian forces to destroy the tank to 20.
Russian forces appear to be deploying Arena-M systems in an attempt to increase the survivability of their tanks against the Ukrainian "tactical reconnaissance strike and combat complex" (TRSC).
This is a system of Ukrainian drones, combined with traditional manned weapons such as artillery and prepared defensive lines in depth — with the aim of stopping the enemy's mechanized maneuvers on the battlefield.
The "Arena-M" system itself likely will not be an effective countermeasure against Ukrainian FPV drones alone, as it can be overloaded and only increases the cost and effort required of Ukrainian forces to repel a Russian mechanized attack.
Russia is conducting a large-scale strike campaign against Kiev
In the summer of 2026, the Kremlin is conducting coordinated strike campaigns against Ukrainian gas stations, port infrastructure, and logistics
The "Arena-M" system alone is currently insufficient to defend against Russian mechanized attacks from Ukrainian drones, let alone all the other weapons that Ukrainian forces are using to create a "destruction zone".
A Russian military blogger affiliated with the Kremlin claims that "Arena-M" has only 12 anti-missile munitions - a capacity that would be sufficient for operational conditions with a lower pace and lower density of FPV drones, such as on the battlefield in Ukraine in the period 2023-2025, but that these capabilities are insufficient in current combat conditions, characterized by a significantly higher and constantly increasing density of drones.
Another Russian military blogger admitted that "Arena-M" by itself is insufficient to restore maneuverability on the battlefield and called on Russian forces to integrate "Arena-M" and other active missile defense systems (APS) in a multi-layered air defense that would allow Russian forces to increase the survivability and maneuverability of their armored vehicles and personnel.
The "Arena-M" active air defense system also does not neutralize Ukrainian defensive measures such as manned weapons, field fortifications, minefields, indirect fire, and other systems that, together with FPV drones, create a wide zone of defeat before reaching the actual defensive positions.
Russian forces had previously attempted to restore operational maneuverability in 2025 through their electronic warfare and electronic jamming campaign against Ukrainian drones, but it proved largely ineffective.
The deployment of the "Arena-M" in July 2026 as part of a mechanized assault demonstrates Russia's ongoing efforts to use new innovations against Ukrainian defenses in an attempt to achieve a breakthrough at the front.
On August 9, Russian forces struck the "Mayaki" bridge on the M-15 Odessa-Reni highway, connecting southern Ukraine with Moldova and Romania.
Russian forces are believed to have struck the Mayaki bridge to cut off the export of Ukrainian grain and other goods along the alternative land corridor that Ukraine has been using since Russian strikes cut off Ukrainian seaborne exports.
Russia is preparing to accept up to 50,000 North Korean troops.