Ukrainian army chief commander reports strategic gains in August Despite Russia’s manpower advantage

Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi said Ukrainian troops regained control over 58 square kilometers of territory in August, while thwarting Russia’s attempts to achieve a breakthrough in key sectors of the front.

According to Syrskyi’s post on Facebook, Russian forces had concentrated efforts on the Pokrovsk, Novopavlivka, Dobropillia, and Zaporizhzhia directions, aiming to encircle Ukrainian troops and secure a strategic advantage. However, Ukrainian units prevented these plans, forcing Russia to delay its offensive on Zaporizhzhia and redeploy marine units to the Donetsk region. Despite Moscow’s three- to six-fold superiority in manpower and equipment in several areas, Syrskyi emphasised that Ukraine inflicted significant losses on the invading forces, Caliber.Az reports via Ukrainian media. 

He reported that while Russian troops captured about 13.5 square kilometers in the Dobropillia sector, they lost 25.5 square kilometers. In Pokrovsk, Russia gained five square kilometers but ceded 26 to Ukrainian control. No Ukrainian territory was lost in the Huliaipole and Dnipro sectors, while four square kilometers were regained in the North-Slobozhansk direction.

The month also marked important structural changes in the Armed Forces, with the transition to a corps system completed, which Syrskyi said has improved troop management and operational efficiency.

Ukraine’s long-range strikes targeted 60 facilities inside Russia, including fuel production sites, air defence systems, and transport infrastructure. Syrskyi added that Ukrainian drones hit over 67,000 Russian military targets in August, with the effectiveness of medium-range strike operations increasing by 25 per cent.

Russian casualties in August alone amounted to nearly 28,800 personnel, bringing total Russian losses since the beginning of 2025 to more than 297,000, Syrskyi reported.

He stressed that Ukraine’s strategy remains focused on exhausting and destroying enemy forces, noting that the month which Moscow had "hoped would bring major advances instead turned into a period of minimal territorial gains for Russia."

By Sabina Mammadli