The Russian military continued its offensive operations on Monday as the 72-hour truce that coincided with the May 9th Victory Day celebrations came to an end. The escalation comes amid uncertainty over whether Ukraine will agree to participate in negotiations, following its rejection of a Western-backed ceasefire proposal.
On Monday, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced the capture of the town of Kotlyarovka in the Donetsk region. The town lies just a few kilometers from the border of the Dnipropetrovsk region. Further south, Russian forces reportedly seized most of the town of Bagatyr, which served as a key defensive position on the road to Novopavlovka in Dnipropetrovsk—likely the next target in this sector.
In central Donbas, Russian troops are advancing near the town of Romanovka. In the north, they have entered Ridkodub as part of a broader push that appears aimed at eventually recapturing the strategic town of Krasny Lyman.
Shortly after the truce expired at midnight on Sunday, Russian President Vladimir Putin held a press conference where he declined a Western-supported Ukrainian ultimatum to agree to a 30-day ceasefire by Monday. Instead, Putin announced he would send a negotiating delegation to Istanbul, Turkey, on May 15th to hold direct talks with Ukrainian representatives.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who has maintained a decree since October 2022 barring Ukrainian government officials from negotiating with Russia while Putin remains in power, responded by stating that he would travel to Turkey on the 15th and wait for Putin “personally.”
Zelensky’s demand for a face-to-face meeting is widely seen as a potential obstacle to negotiations, as it is highly unlikely Putin would agree to direct talks with another head of state before substantive dialogue has taken place at the delegation level.
Reports also suggest Russia may be preparing to launch more coordinated strikes using its Oreshnik missile system. These developments coincide with the recent closure of the Kapustin Yar test site, the location from which the missile was previously launched in November during a strike on a Ukrainian military-industrial facility in Dnipropetrovsk.
Additionally, the reported creation of two new Russian reserve armies—totaling approximately 250,000 troops—is viewed by some analysts as a signal that Putin's May 15th proposal may be a final opportunity for negotiations before a potential new and intensified phase of the war aimed at securing a decisive military victory over Ukraine.