Russian forces are advancing in Ukraine at the fastest rate since the early days of the 2022 invasion, taking an area half the size of Greater London over the past month, analysts and war bloggers say.

Russian forces are advancing in Ukraine at the fastest rate since the early months of the war, according to a respected US-based thinktank. Battlefield reports indicate Moscow is edging closer to the key logistics town of Pokrovsk in Donetsk.