Ukraine frontline report: fighting rages in Donetsk region as Putin demands full control | BBC News

Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region is on the frontline of the military and diplomatic battle over the country’s future. It’s rich in natural resources and has been fought over since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, at huge cost to both sides.

Russia already occupies most of Donetsk. Now President Putin is demanding that Ukraine hands over the part it still controls, as part of the price of any peace agreement.

Meanwhile the fighting continues, with Russian troops making slow but steady advances. Towns and villages lie in ruins, drones circle overhead searching for targets and the last remaining civilians are forced to flee for their lives.

A BBC team has travelled into Donetsk, to the frontline town of Dobropillia, which is under daily Russian attack and with its water supplies cut off.

Reeta Chakrabarti presents BBC News at Ten reporting by Quentin Somerville and Darren Conway.

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Post from BBC News on August 24, 2025

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