Russia on Sunday claimed its troops had captured a strategically important town in eastern Ukraine as part of a grinding campaign to weaken Kyiv’s grip on the country’s industrial heartland.
Russia’s Defense Ministry announced the fall of Velyka Novosilka, which had around 5,000 residents before the war, following a monthslong battle. Its statement could not be independently verified, and Ukraine claimed its troops had only strategically withdrawn from certain areas.
