Jens Asbjørn Bøgen
The recent gains has basically wiped out the Russian gains from December.
Ukraine and Russia are arriving in Geneva, Switzerland, for another round of peace talks in an attempt to reach a diplomatic end to the war.
During the night, however, Russia launched a massive attack on Ukraine, sending 425 missiles and drones to target Ukraine’s energy grid — a strategy that Russia has used often this winter.
But Ukrainian forces have also dealt noticeable blows to the Russian forces, as Ukraine’s forces pushed Russian troops back across a swathe of territory last week, marking one of Kyiv’s fastest gains in over two years, according to a news analysis.
Russia’s December gains reset
The analysis was made by AFP, based on data from the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), and it found that Ukraine retook about 201 square kilometres between Wednesday and Sunday.
The area recovered is close to the amount Russia captured during the whole of December.
According to the Kyiv Post, it represents Kyiv’s largest territorial gain over such a short stretch since its counteroffensive in June 2023, according to the ISW’s assessment.
Front line shifts
According to AFP’s review of the ISW data, Russian forces made forward movements only on February 9 during that period. On the remaining days, Ukrainian troops advanced.
Most of the reclaimed territory lies roughly 80 kilometres east of Zaporizhzhia, an area where Russian forces have steadily expanded their foothold since the summer of 2025.
As of mid-February, Moscow controlled about 19.5 percent of Ukraine’s territory, either fully or partially, compared with 18.6 percent a year earlier.
Communications disrupted
The Washington-based ISW said the timing of the Ukrainian advances appeared linked to a reported suspension of Starlink access for Russian forces.
“These Ukrainian counterattacks are likely leveraging the recent block on Russian forces’ access to Starlink, which Russian milbloggers (military bloggers) have claimed is causing communications and command and control issues on the battlefield,” the ISW said in its update on the war on February 15, 2026.
Military analysts reported disruptions to Russian Starlink terminals on February 5, shortly after Elon Musk announced “measures” aimed at halting Moscow’s use of the system.
Kyiv has previously alleged that Russian troops relied on the technology to guide drones and bypass Ukrainian electronic jamming systems.
Sources: AFP, Institute for the Study of War, Kyiv Post
