Russian army announces control over towns in eastern and northeastern Ukraine

The Russian army announced on Wednesday that it had taken control of two additional towns in eastern and northeastern Ukraine after its forces capitalized on shortages of ammunition and recruits within the Ukrainian forces to achieve battlefield progress.

The Russian Defense Ministry stated in a press release that it had "liberated" the towns of Novokalynove on the outskirts of the Donetsk region in the east, where its soldiers had been advancing in recent weeks, and Kyslivka in the Kharkiv region (northeast).

The Ukrainian army remains in a defensive position since its counteroffensive failed last summer.

Russia maintains the initiative in facing the Ukrainian army, which struggles with recruitment difficulties and suffers due to the slow delivery of Western aid.

AFP