President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has assigned two experienced military commanders to lead a new grouping aimed at strengthening defenses around key industrial cities in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region. During a visit to frontline areas, he gave Third Army Corps chief Andriy Biletskyi and First Corps Azov commander Denys Prokopenko responsibility for the cities described as a “fortress belt,” including Kostiantynivka, Kramatorsk and Sloviansk.

Russian forces have increased pressure toward these defensive hubs. DeepState, an open-source military map analysis group, said Russian troops were seeking to push deeper into Kostiantynivka, while Moscow was conducting extensive air and artillery strikes on Kramatorsk and Sloviansk in preparation for a possible larger assault. Analyst Mykola Bielieskov backed the appointments, while drone forces commander Robert Brovdi called them a step toward technology-driven “smart warfare.”

Zelenskyy said Ukraine struck 16 sites inside Russia in one day, including oil facilities, airfields, missile units, military factories and supply infrastructure. Russian attacks damaged a thermal power plant in Kherson and injured two people at an industrial site in Kryvyi Rih. Ukraine and Russia also exchanged 10 prisoners each, according to the source.