Russian forces have advanced to the border of Ukraine's Dnipropetrovsk region and are mounting attacks into the east-central area, Moscow said Sunday, signaling a significant escalation as peace negotiations remain deadlocked and tensions rise over the fate of thousands of dead soldiers. The claimed incursion comes amid heavy fighting near Kostyantynivka and Pokrovsk and a deepening political dispute over the handling of prisoner swaps and the repatriation of wartime casualties.
Units from the Russian military's 90th Tank Division reached the frontier between Donetsk and Dnipropetrovsk and have begun offensive operations, according to Russia's Ministry of Defense. "The enemy does not abandon its intentions to enter the Dnipropetrovsk region," Ukraine's Southern Defense Forces said. "Our soldiers are courageously and professionally holding their section of the front, disrupting the occupier's plans."
Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, said Moscow's latest assault sends a message to Kyiv and Western allies that further military gains are inevitable if peace terms recognizing Russia's territorial claims are rejected.Medvedev said the offensive demonstrated that Russian forces would continue advancing if Ukraine refuses to recognize Moscow's territorial gains in peace talks.
Ukraine has denied that Russian troops have entered Dnipropetrovsk. Viktor Trehubov, a spokesperson for Ukraine's Khortytsia forces, said reports of Russian breakthroughs from Pokrovsk and Novopavlivka were false. "The Russians are constantly spreading false information... but (in neither place) is this information true," Trehubov told CNN.
Still, the pro-Ukrainian Deep State mapping project indicated Russian forces were closing in on Dnipropetrovsk's western edge and advancing near Kostyantynivka, a strategic logistical hub. Ukrainian spokesman Dmytro Zaporozhets said Russian troops were trying to "build a bridgehead for an attack" on the city.
According to Deep State data, Russia now controls 113,273 square kilometers, or 18.8% of Ukraine's territory-an area larger than Virginia-including all of Crimea, nearly all of Luhansk, and large portions of Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson.
On the humanitarian front, Moscow accused Ukraine of stalling the return of 12,000 bodies of fallen soldiers. Russian state media showed refrigerated trucks transporting corpses in the Bryansk region, while Ukraine called the move political theater. "The Russian side is... trying to play some kind of dirty political and information game," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in his nightly address.
Zelenskiy pledged to continue prisoner exchanges despite the mounting tension, warning that Russia's behavior "casts great doubt on all international efforts-including those by the United States in terms of talks and diplomacy."
The renewed military offensive coincides with increased Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian territory. Moscow accused Kyiv of sabotaging nuclear-capable bombers and railway infrastructure. President Vladimir Putin told former U.S. President Donald Trump that Russia would retaliate for the attacks.
Trump, speaking Thursday, said the war resembled a schoolyard brawl. "Sometimes you see two young children fighting like crazy... Sometimes you're better off letting them fight for a while and then pulling them apart." Trump, who has proposed a peace initiative, warned that consequences could come for both sides if they fail to participate. "It could be on both countries, to be honest," he said. "You know, it takes two to tango."
U.S. officials told Reuters that a larger, multi-pronged Russian retaliation is likely but has not yet materialized. Zelenskiy urged Ukrainians to remain vigilant, especially in areas like Pokrovsk, which he said were under sustained assault. The situation was "far from easy, but everything depends on the resilience of our units," he said.
