Ukraine confirms Russian entry into Dnipropetrovsk as battles intensify

Ukraine has for the first time admitted that Russian forces have entered the eastern industrial region of Dnipropetrovsk, raising fears of a new front in the war as diplomatic efforts to end the conflict stall.

Viktor Trehubov of the Dnipro Operational-Strategic Group of Troops confirmed the incursion, calling it "the first attack of such a large scale in Dnipropetrovsk region," though he stressed that Russian advances had been halted.

For months, Moscow has claimed it crossed into the area from Donetsk, where its forces have gradually made gains despite heavy casualties.

Russian officials said as early as June that an offensive was underway in Dnipropetrovsk, though Ukrainian reports suggest troops have barely pushed past the regional border.

The Ukrainian DeepState mapping project reported on Tuesday that Russian forces had taken two villages, Zaporizke and Novohryhorivka, just inside Dnipropetrovsk.

But Ukraine’s armed forces disputed that account, saying they still controlled Zaporizke and that “active hostilities are also ongoing in the area of the village of Novohryhorivka.”

While Moscow has not claimed Dnipropetrovsk as part of its annexation bids, its forces have struck major cities in the region, including the capital Dnipro.

Before the war, Dnipropetrovsk was home to more than three million people and stood as Ukraine’s second-largest hub of heavy industry after Donbas, which comprises Donetsk and Luhansk.

Russian advances in recent weeks have largely been in Donetsk.

Earlier this month, a small infantry unit pushed 10km beyond Ukrainian lines near Dobropillia, though reports suggest the advance was stopped.

Diplomatic pressure to end the war is faltering despite US-led efforts. President Donald Trump met Russia’s Vladimir Putin in Alaska before holding talks with Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky in Washington, but expectations for progress have dimmed.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said “the agenda [for a summit] is not ready at all” and dismissed talks on security guarantees without Moscow’s involvement as “pointless.”

Putin is said to have told Trump he would end the war if Ukraine handed over the parts of Donetsk still under Kyiv’s control.

But Ukrainian officials warn Russia’s ambitions stretch far wider.

Col Pavlo Palisa, deputy head of the presidential office, cautioned in June that the Kremlin sought to occupy all of Ukraine east of the Dnipro River.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas also rejected the idea of trading land for peace, describing it as “a trap.” She told the BBC: “We are forgetting that Russia has not made one single concession and they are the ones who are the aggressor here.”

Western allies continue to discuss post-war security guarantees for Ukraine. Zelensky met Britain’s armed forces chief Adm Sir Tony Radakin in Kyiv on Tuesday, and the UK government said it would be prepared to deploy troops once hostilities end.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz added that guarantees would primarily strengthen Ukraine’s long-term defense, stressing: “If the Russian president is serious about putting an end to the killing, then he’ll accept the offer.”

Meanwhile, Ukraine has eased restrictions on the movement of men of fighting age.

Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko announced that men aged 18 to 22 will now be allowed to travel abroad without authorisation. The rule also applies to those already overseas, who may return home and leave again freely.

Svyrydenko said the decision aimed to maintain family and cultural ties amid rising numbers of parents sending teenage boys abroad before they reach 18.

“We want Ukrainians to maintain their links with Ukraine as much as possible,” she said.

Men under 22 are exempt from military conscription, which begins at 25 after the minimum age was lowered last year. Around 5.6 million Ukrainian men are currently living abroad.