Pavlo Palisa, Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, told journalists that the Ukrainian side is recording a steady trend toward a slowdown in the pace of Russian troops' advance on the front. According to him, the length of the active line of contact remains substantial, at around 1,200 kilometers. “We have a stable trend toward a slowdown in the enemy's pace of advance. There is roughly a 1,200-kilometer active line of contact,” the OP representative noted, adding that the dynamics of events on certain sections of the front give him “limited optimism.”
Zelensky's visit to the Oleksandrivsk direction
Palisa also spoke about the recent trip by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to units carrying out tasks in the Oleksandrivsk direction. These are units of the Air Assault Troops, which, according to the OP representative, have been conducting active operations there for a long time. During the visit, the military, together with the commander, briefed the president on plans for further operations in this direction, which, in Kyiv's assessment, signals readiness to continue offensive operations on local sections.
The philosophy of active defense
Ukraine, according to Palisa, intends to continue adhering to the concept of active defense. “Active operations on certain sections of the front are still planned and will continue. The philosophy of active defense is being maintained,” he emphasized. Thus, Kyiv is summarizing the current phase of combat operations as a period in which the initiative on certain directions is gradually shifting in favor of the Defense Forces, without, however, declaring a total offensive along the entire front.
Territorial balance in 2026
Separately, the Office of the President noted that Ukraine is gradually narrowing the gap between the areas of territory seized by Russia and those that the Defense Forces have been able to liberate since the beginning of 2026. Volodymyr Zelensky stated that by the end of the current year this figure may be equalized, which, in Kyiv's view, should become a key indicator of the effectiveness of defensive operations in the second half of 2026.
Contradictory data
Kyiv's assessment of the slowing pace of the enemy directly contradicts the position of the Russian leadership. Thus, according to TASS, Vladimir Putin stated that Russia will not give Ukraine a chance to stop the advance of Russian troops. In other words, while the Ukrainian side speaks of a “slowdown” and “limited optimism,” the Russian side, conversely, claims that the offensive momentum is being maintained and that Kyiv is unable to stop the advance. Both sides are giving mutually exclusive characterizations of the current phase of combat operations, and independent verification of these claims under conditions of a closed front remains extremely limited. The discrepancy in figures and interpretations of the pace of advance cannot, as of today, be objectively confirmed by either side.
