Russian Defence Ministry said on Saturday its forces had taken three Ukrainian villages, claiming new advances in the east and northeast of the country as fighting continued along the front lines.
Russian troops seized Khrapivshchyna in Ukraine’s Sumy area and Novoandriivka and Rubizhne in Donetsk, the ministry said.
The claims are another claimed territorial gain by Russian soldiers as Moscow continues its operation in eastern Ukraine and pushes Ukrainian defences on multiple fronts.
Reuters could not independently verify the battlefield reports and Ukrainian authorities had not immediately confirmed that the three communities had fallen under Russian control.
Russia’s Defence Ministry also said its forces had hit a logistical center in Ukraine’s Kyiv region, which it alleged had components for Ukrainian ballistic missiles.
The government did not disclose details that could independently verify the scale or impact of the reported strike.
The fresh accusations come as Ukraine continues to see heavy fighting across the country, with Russia putting pressure on positions in the Donetsk region and also acting close Ukraine’s northern border.
Ukrainian officials have repeatedly reported Russian strikes in various places as Kyiv has ramped up its own long-range drone campaign against Russian military and energy objectives.
The discoveries come amid questionable diplomatic efforts to end the war. An adviser to the Ukrainian president, Kyrylo Budanov, suggested recently that “technical talks” on the war could happen soon, but cautioned against expecting any progress right away.
For now, the contradictory claims on the battlefield highlight the challenge of independently confirming territorial shifts as fighting continues.
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