The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) recorded advances by the Ukrainian Defense Forces in the Kharkiv, Donetsk, and Dnipropetrovsk regions over the past 24 hours in its daily operational update. According to the analysts, Ukrainian troops not only held key defensive lines but also disrupted several offensive operations by Russian forces along multiple axes. This is reported by RBC-Ukraine, citing the latest ISW report published on September 5, 2026.
Kharkiv Axis: Odradne Remains Under Ukrainian Control
In northern Kharkiv region, Ukrainian units repelled Russian attacks near the settlement of Odradne, located east of Kharkiv. According to ISW's assessment, this fact indicates that Odradne is still under the control of the Defense Forces, despite earlier Russian claims of its "liberation." In addition, Ukrainian troops continue to strike targets of the Russian grouping in the occupied part of the region, confirming that the active phase of combat operations in the area is ongoing.
Kupiansk and Borove Axes: Ukrainian Counterattacks
On the Kupiansk axis, Russian troops continued offensive operations, but ISW did not record any confirmed cases of their advance. A similar picture was observed on the Borove axis: on September 3 and 4, the Russian Armed Forces conducted limited offensive actions but achieved no success. Ukrainian forces, by contrast, carried out successful counterattacks. According to Russian military bloggers, the area between Redkodub and Nove, southeast of Borove, remains contested territory where intense fighting continues. ISW separately notes that personnel of the "Kharta" unit inflicted losses on Russian forces in the Kupiansk area.
Slaviansk, Kostiantynivka, and Pokrovsk: Ukrainian Advance to the East
The most significant shift on the front, according to ISW, is the advance of Ukrainian forces east of Slaviansk. Geolocated video footage released on September 3 recorded a Russian strike on Ukrainian positions in the northwestern part of Rai-Aleksandrivka, located east of Slaviansk. This indicates that the Ukrainian Armed Forces are holding and advancing in an area where the Russian army had attempted to seize tactical high ground for a subsequent assault on the city. On the Kostiantynivka–Druzhkivka axis, Russian offensive actions on September 3–4 also did not lead to an advance: Ukrainian forces are holding positions that block the route to Kostiantynivka. On the Pokrovsk axis, the Russian Armed Forces continued their offensive, but no confirmed successes were recorded over the two days.
Novopavlivka and Huliaipole: Breakthrough and Stagnation
On the Novopavlivka axis, Ukrainian troops achieved a breakthrough: according to geolocated footage from September 3, the Defense Forces advanced west of Kotliarivka, located slightly east of Novopavlivka. On the Huliaipole axis and in the western part of Zaporizhzhia region, Russian troops continued offensive actions on September 3 and 4, but no confirmed cases of their advance in these sectors were recorded by any of the sources analyzed by ISW.
Contradictory Data
The ISW report and the statements of the parties contain a number of inconsistencies. First, the Russian side had previously claimed the capture of Odradne, but the recorded repelling of attacks near this settlement indicates that Ukrainian control is maintained. Second, on September 4, one of the Russian military bloggers reported the alleged capture of Nikonivka southeast of Slaviansk, but ISW notes a complete lack of confirmation of this information. Third, the Ukrainian Defense Forces had officially refuted Moscow's claim of the "liberation" of two villages in Sumy region. Thus, on several sections of the front, the versions of the parties directly contradict each other, and independent verification based on geolocation data has not yet confirmed Russian claims of an advance.
Overall, according to the ISW review for September 3–4, 2026, the operational situation is characterized by the steady holding of positions by the Defense Forces on key axes, successful counterattacks, and local breakthroughs, while offensive operations by the Russian army on most fronts have not led to a confirmed advance.
