Russia’s Siege of Kostyantynivka: The Donbas Doorways

Tue Jun 23 2026 14:27:41 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Russian forces have encircled the Ukrainian town of Kostyantynivka, a critical gateway to the Donbas. Will they break through before Ukraine can push back?

In eastern Ukraine, Russian troops are tightening a siege around the strategic city of Kostyantynivka, a move that could pave a path into the Donbas region. Ukrainian forces claim control, but the city remains a “grey zone” with increasing Russian presence. Capturing Kostyantynivka would let Russia advance toward key Ukrainian cities like Kramatorsk and Sloviansk, reshaping the front line.

Russia’s siege of Kostyantynivka: The Donbas doorway

Russian soldiers have stationed themselves along the northern edge of Kostyantynivka, the town that sits on the roadway that could bring Russian armies straight into the Donbas. For the Ukrainian military, holding this city means keeping the route to Kramatorsk and Sloviansk – Ukraine’s last eastern bulwark – intact.

“It’s a grey zone,” says an anonymous Ukrainian drone pilot. “Russian forces slip in behind our backs. In an urban setting, pushing them out is hugely hard—especially when every building hides a unit.”

The blow is two‑fold. First, with Kostyantynivka’s fall, Russia could control a pivotal logistical corridor that cuts through Ukrainian supply lines. Second, it would set a psychological precedent, showing the Russian army can win in tightly defended urban areas, a key objective for Moscow.

In the last few weeks, the Russian defence ministry has announced that they have seized villages to the west of the city, recording a pattern seen in the capture of Pokrovsk and other front‑line towns. Ukrainian commanders, meanwhile, have kept the story quiet, fearing that an admission of losses could spark a larger counter‑attack from Moscow.

Inside Kostyantynivka, Ukrainian drones—still limited in number—are targeting Russian launch sites and infantry. But Russian small arms units are incrementally piling into the city in a slow, methodical sweep. A Ukrainian officer said, “We can’t hold everything we control, let alone force an assault on Russian troops that are creeping from the south.”

Logistics is a nightmare: every day, the Ukrainian forces scan for Russian drones that can hit their own equipment. This means supply convoys get intercepted, and the last in the chain—Kramatorsk—remains a risky mission site.

If Kostyantynivka collapses, “logistical operations will be a nightmare and staying in Kramatorsk will become extremely dangerous,” warns the Ukrainian monitoring project, DeepState.

The tension builds. Russian troops have advanced from the south and are nearing the city’s northern outskirts, a “key engagement” according to Kyiv’s Brig Gen Oleksandr Bakulin. Yet, the Ukrainian drone pilot insists: we are still fighting inside Kostyantynivka. The next move? Target Russian logistics and pilots to halt the eastward push.