Ukraine yesterday reported more gains in the early stages of its counteroffensive, but said that Russian forces were “doing everything” they could to defend the territory they have occupied.
Ukrainian Deputy Minister of Defense Hanna Maliar said that Ukrainian troops had advanced 250m near the small eastern city of Bakhmut, 200m on the Toretsk front in east Ukraine and 500m to 1km in the direction of the port city of Berdyansk.
Ukrainian forces had gained control of an area of up to 3km2, Maliar said, but did not say over what period.
Photo: Reuters
Ukrainian forces had advanced 6.5km and taken control of an area of 90km2, she said late on Monday.
That was still only a fraction of the 103,600km2 that remains under Russia’s occupation.
“The enemy is doing everything to hold on to the positions it has seized,” Maliar wrote on the Telegram messaging app yesterday.
Photo: Reuters
She said that Russian forces had air support and were showering Ukrainian troops with intense artillery fire, and that Ukrainian troops were encountering “continuous minefields which are combined with anti-tank ditches.”
“All this is combined with constant counterattacks by enemy units on armored vehicles and the massive use of ATGMs [anti-tank guided missiles] and kamikaze drones,” she said.
Reuters could not verify the battlefield situation.
Russia had not officially acknowledged the Ukrainian gains and has said it has repulsed Ukrainian attacks, inflicting heavy casualties since the counteroffensive began.
Ukraine on Monday said it had retaken seven villages in a “tough” counteroffensive.
“The fighting is tough, but we are moving forward, this is very important,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in a daily address. “I thank our guys for every Ukrainian flag that is now returning to its rightful place in villages on the newly de-occupied territory.”
Additional reporting by AFP
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