On the 26th local time, the Russian Ministry of Defense issued an announcement saying that the Russian military forces suspended their active attacks in the area of operation after the Kiev regime issued a statement preparing for negotiations on the 25th. After the Ukrainian side said that it would abandon the negotiation process, on the 26th all troops continued to carry out offensives in all directions in accordance with the battle plan. With the support of the firepower of the armed forces of the Russian Federation, the offensives of the Forces of Donetsk and Luhansk against the positions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine also continued to be successful. The Luhansk forces continued to advance to the northwest towards the town of Luberzhnowe.
The Russian Defense Ministry said the Ukrainian nationalists were armed with large-caliber machine guns or mortar off-road vehicles, but that did not stop the Luhansk forces from advancing. Since the start of the special operation, the Luhansk forces have advanced 46 km and taken control of the towns of Shastiya and Mulatovo. Petrovskoye's forces, advancing west of Donetsk, advanced a further 10 kilometers and took control of 3 settlements.
The Russian Defense Ministry said that on the evening of February 25, when the Russian fleet evacuated 82 Ukrainian surrender soldiers from Snake Island, it engaged the Ukrainian Navy ships, and some Ukrainian warships disguised as civilian ships attacked the Russian fleet. During the battle, 6 Ukrainian naval ships were destroyed, and the Ukrainian surrender soldiers were not wounded. During the war between the Russian-Ukrainian fleet, U.S. drones have been patrolling the skies over the belligerent area. The Russian Defense Ministry believes it is highly likely that U.S. drones directed Ukrainian warships towards ships of russia's Black Sea Fleet.
The Russian Defense Ministry accused the Ukrainian government of distributing small automatic weapons, grenade launchers and ammunition to the population, arguing that the participation of Ukrainian civilians in hostilities organized by nationalists would inevitably lead to misfortune and casualties.
The briefing noted that Russian military intelligence continues to show that Ukrainian nationalists are deploying rocket artillery and other artillery units not only in Kiev, but also in residential areas of other Ukrainian cities. The Russian Defense Ministry said that the Ukrainian leadership has repeatedly said that it has not used civilians as cover and has not deployed heavy weapons in towns and cities, which will have serious consequences.
The Russian Ministry of Defense once again stressed that the Russian armed forces have not carried out any attacks on the residential areas of Ukrainian towns and cities, and the Ukrainian residents should demand that the Kiev authorities immediately evacuate all heavy weapons from the residential areas.