Ukraine bolsters Donetsk defenses as allies share Storm Shadow missile tech

Ukrainian commander Mykhailo Drapatyi directed the reinforcement of two units defending Sloviansk on August 26, strengthening the Donetsk region’s “fortress belt” that includes Kramatorsk, Druzhkivka and Kostiantynivka. Russian commander Valery Gerasimov claimed troops were within four kilometres of Sloviansk, but geospatial analysis by Deep State and the Institute for the Study of War places them between 12 and 16 kilometres away.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said most Russian casualties are occurring on the Kostiantynivka front, estimating substantial losses this year. In parallel, Britain and France reached a decision to transfer Storm Shadow cruise-missile technology to Ukraine, enabling a new air-defence focus on destroying Russian ballistic-missile production and launch facilities. Ukrainian forces have intensified long-range strikes on Russian airfields, fuel depots, missile launchers and radar sites, seeking to cripple the adversary’s logistical and weapons capabilities.