The Russian army accelerated its advance in Ukraine for the fourth consecutive month, achieving its greatest successes in July since November, according to an analysis by Agence France-Presse based on data provided by the American Institute for the Study of War, BTA reports.
In one month, Moscow's forces seized 713 sq. km of Ukrainian territory, and Kiev regained 79 sq. km, or which gives a net advance of 634 sq. km (with a total territory of Ukraine of 603,628 sq. km). This net advance exceeds the 588 sq km gained in June, 507 sq km in May, 379 sq km in April, and 240 sq km in March, after a winter slowdown.
These gains include territories fully or partially controlled by Russia, as well as those it claims.
With the exception of the early months of the war in 2022, when the front line was figuratively much more mobile than it is today, only in November 2024 (725 sq km) Russian advances were greater than those made last month.
Nearly three-quarters of the Russian advance in July was concentrated in Donetsk region, the main scene of clashes between Russians and Ukrainians for the past two years.
That is where Chasov Yar is located, which Moscow said yesterday it had captured - a claim that Kiev immediately denied. Located next to Bakhmut, which fell in May 2023, the city is strategically located relative to Kramatorsk and Slavyansk, where the main logistical bases of the Ukrainian army are located, AFP notes.
At the end of July, the Russian army at least partially controlled or claimed 78% of Donetsk region, compared with 62% a year earlier. About 31% of this area was already under the control of pro-Russian separatists before the start of the large-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
But in July, the Russian army also made gains in other Ukrainian regions, with a net gain of about 170 sq km.
In Kharkiv Oblast (northeast), Moscow's forces seized almost 120 sq km, passing the 5% threshold of controlled or claimed territory in that area for the first time since October 2022. Eastern Zaporizhia Oblast has also been under attack, with gains totaling 42 sq km this month.
Russian troops also claim to have made progress in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. They recently announced the capture of two villages there, which, according to an AFP analysis of the claimed territories, represents territorial gains of 22 sq km since the start of this offensive on June 8. Kiev denies any Russian presence in the area.
The only area where the Russian army has retreated is the northern Sumy region. In July, Moscow retreated about 11 square kilometers there, after seizing 130 square kilometers in June.
More generally, the past 12 months have been marked by an offensive by the Russian army in Ukraine. From August 2024 to July 2025, the Russians seized almost 5,900 square kilometers, compared with 1,360 square kilometers in the previous twelve months. However, Russia's territorial gains over the past year amount to less than 1% of Ukraine's pre-war territory, including Crimea and the Donbass.
At the end of July, Russia exercised full or partial control over almost 19% of Ukraine's territory.