Russia's Military Advance Hits Slowest Pace Since 2024 as Ukraine Scores Breakthroughs
Russia's army recorded its slowest advance on the Ukrainian frontline in nearly two years during February, according to a detailed analysis of data from the Institute for the Study of War. This significant slowdown coincided with Moscow's forces struggling after Elon Musk cut their access to Starlink internet terminals, which had been crucial for battlefield communications and coordination.
Frontline Dynamics Shift in Ukraine's Favor
The analysis conducted by Agence France-Presse reveals that Russia advanced by a total of 123 square kilometers (48 square miles) throughout February, marking the lowest territorial gain since April 2024. In contrast, Ukrainian troops managed several localized advances during the same period, including a substantial 61 square-kilometer gain on February 15, followed by gains exceeding 50 square kilometers on both February 21 and 23.
Kyiv's forces experienced most success along the southern frontline, where they pushed Russia's army back in the Dnipropetrovsk region. Meanwhile, Moscow has been grinding forward in the eastern sector, moving closer toward the strategically important hubs of Kramatorsk and Sloviansk in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region. Currently, Russia occupies just over 19% of Ukrainian territory.
Ukrainian Drone Attacks Disrupt Russian Infrastructure
Russia's Sheskharis oil terminal suspended oil loadings on Monday following a sophisticated Ukrainian drone attack that injured five people, damaged 20 buildings, and set a fuel terminal ablaze. According to Russian and Ukrainian officials along with three trade sources, the Sheskharis terminal in Novorossiysk represents Russia's major oil outlet in the Black Sea, typically loading 700,000 barrels per day of crude oil.
An official from Ukraine's security service, the SBU, confirmed that Ukrainian drones had struck the terminal at the port, hitting six of its seven loading facilities. The drones also reportedly struck Russian warships and a naval base, along with an S-400 surface-to-air missile defense system. While Russia made no mention of any damage to its military assets, Ukraine's general staff provided detailed accounts of the successful strikes.
Diplomatic Developments and Peace Talks
US-brokered talks between Russia and Ukraine expected later this week may take place in Switzerland or Turkey if a planned meeting in Abu Dhabi proves impossible due to the ongoing war in the Middle East, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced on Monday. Zelenskyy also noted that western countries have given no indication that their delivery of vital air defense missiles to Kyiv could be disrupted by commitments to Middle East defense.
Peace talks have appeared deadlocked in recent weeks over Russia's insistence that Ukraine hand over the remaining part of its eastern Donbas region which Moscow does not currently control. This diplomatic stalemate continues as both sides maintain their military positions.
Civilian Casualties and Regional Tensions
Russian strikes killed at least eight people in Ukraine on Monday, including during an attack on a civilian passenger train. Three people were killed in the eastern city of Kramatorsk, a Ukrainian stronghold that Russian forces are advancing toward, according to officials. The head of the wider Donetsk region reported two people killed and thirteen wounded in Druzhkivka, highlighting the ongoing human cost of the conflict.
Slovakia wants to initiate a meeting with EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, ideally together with Ukraine and Hungary, to restart oil flows along the Druzhba pipeline as quickly as possible, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico stated on Monday. Slovakia and Hungary have blamed Ukraine for delaying the restart of Russian crude supplies through the pipeline, although Kyiv maintains that repairs take time following what it described as a Russian attack on pumping stations in western Ukraine in late January.
"This has now become a European-Ukrainian problem and Europe must decide on which side it stands," Fico emphasized, highlighting the broader geopolitical implications of the energy dispute.
Ukraine's EU Accession Progress
Ukraine will complete the technical work needed to open negotiations on all topics for its EU accession process within days, President Zelenskyy confirmed on Monday. Zelenskyy urged the European Union to agree on a firm date for Ukraine to join the bloc, arguing that this would provide an important guarantee of the country's future security.
"We are ready, but not all leaders of the European Union are ... I mean, not everyone is ready to give Ukraine this opportunity," Zelenskyy noted, referencing the political challenges within the EU. Ukraine became a formal EU candidate country in the early days following Russia's invasion in February 2022, but Kyiv's progress through the existing EU process has been consistently blocked by Hungary, which has prevented the unanimous approval required to formally open each of the six accession "clusters" of issues to be resolved.
