Ukraine’s military said it has recaptured the villages of Stepne and Novokostiantynivka in the northeastern region of Sumy, its second reported success in three days after retaking Bezsalivka on Sunday. Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi described the fighting as “tough” but said Kyiv’s forces were pressing forward to reclaim territory along a frontline where Russia controls about 200 sq km. Reuters was unable to independently verify the gains. Further south, Russian troops mounted one of their largest pushes of the year, advancing as much as 10 kilometres toward the coal-mining town of Dobropillia in Donetsk, according to Ukraine’s Deep State monitoring project and battlefield commanders. Kyiv estimates more than 110,000 Russian personnel are concentrated on the Pokrovsk axis and says reserves have been deployed after at least 35 attempts to breach Ukrainian lines. Officials called the situation “difficult and dynamic” but denied Moscow had achieved an operational breakthrough. The duelling moves come days before U.S. President Donald Trump meets Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday for talks aimed at ending the three-year war. Trump has suggested both sides may need to cede land—remarks that have drawn alarm in Kyiv and European capitals, where leaders insist any settlement must uphold Ukraine’s sovereignty. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy warned that Russia’s latest offensive activity shows it is preparing new operations rather than a cease-fire.