(MENAFN) In October, Russian forces continued to advance in Ukraine, concentrating attacks on the eastern Donetsk region, according to an analysis of military data. The area has seen the most intense fighting during the nearly four-year conflict, with Ukraine working to defend the strategic city of Pokrovsk.

The review of available data indicates that Russia captured roughly 461 square kilometres last month, maintaining a pace consistent with the average monthly gains this year, though lower than July’s 634 square kilometres. Moscow now controls about 81% of Donetsk, which it claims as its own territory, while Ukraine rejects demands for troop withdrawals from Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia as preconditions for peace talks.

Recent weeks have seen renewed Russian pressure on Pokrovsk, with Ukraine’s 7th Air Assault Brigade confirming that special forces have been deployed to the city. Russian units are reportedly near Myrnograd, another long-contested city, while Ukrainian defenses have been reinforced.

The data also indicates that Russia seized 150 square kilometres in the Dnipropetrovsk region, an area not claimed by Moscow. Overall, Russia controls or asserts control over approximately 19.2% of Ukrainian territory, including Crimea, annexed in 2014, and parts of Donetsk and Lugansk previously held by Moscow-backed separatists. At the peak of its 2022 invasion, Russian forces held 27.7% of Ukraine before Kyiv regained significant areas in the east and south.

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