In April, for the first time since the Ukrainian counter-offensive in June 2023, Russia lost more territory in Ukraine than it gained. This follows from an AFP analysis based on data from the American Institute for the Study of War (ISW), writes TASR.
Between March and April, Moscow lost control over an area of ​​approximately 120 square kilometers. Russia’s advance has slowed since late 2025 as communications problems within the Russian military, combined with Ukrainian counterattacks, have helped Kiev achieve local breakthroughs in the southeast.
ISW attributes the slowdown of the Russian offensive not only to Ukraine’s counterattacks, but also to cutting off Russian forces from access to the Starlink satellite communications system and the Kremlin’s efforts to restrict access to the Telegram app. The slowdown in the pace of Russia’s advance may also be related to “annual seasonal influences,” as thawing frozen ground and spring rains soften the ground and make it difficult to move heavy equipmentISW said.
In April, Ukraine advanced on several sections of the front line and regained approximately 40 square kilometers in the Zaporozhye, Kharkiv and Donetsk regions. However, AFP’s calculations do not include infiltration operations, which are a favorite Russian tactic of sending small but highly mobile groups of troops behind enemy lines. They also do not include the procedures that Russia claims to have achieved on Ukrainian territory, but ISW has not yet confirmed or denied them.
Russian troops have gained several square kilometers of territory east of the city of Kramatorsk in the Donetsk region, where Russia is concentrating its efforts. Moscow currently occupies a little over 19 percent of the territory of Ukraine.
