Ukraine says it has driven Russian forces out of an eighth village in its two-week-old counteroffensive and as a defence official vowed Kyiv’s “biggest blow” lay ahead despite tough resistance from Moscow’s troops.
Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar said Ukrainian forces had retaken Piatykhatky, a settlement on a heavily fortified part of the front line near the most direct route to the country’s Azov Sea coast.
This was part of an advance by Kyiv of up to seven kilometres into Russian lines in two weeks.
“The enemy will not easily give up their positions, and we must prepare ourselves for a tough duel,” Maliar said on the Telegram messaging app.
The military “are moving as they should have been moving and the biggest blow is yet to come”.
She said the fiercest fighting was in the east and south of Ukraine.
Separately, she said Ukraine’s military was preventing a Russian advance in the east where it concentrated its units, including air assault troops.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his nightly video address Kyiv’s military was moving forward in some sectors and defending against intensified attacks in others.
But the net outcome was favourable for Ukraine, he said.
“We have no lost positions, only liberated ones, and they have only losses,” he said.
Two slick videos released on Telegram by the Ukrainian armed forces showed what they said were attacks and advances by their forces in recapturing the village of Piatykhatky, including several strikes on Russian positions and a convoy.
The video shows thick smoke rising from the area.
Columns of Ukrainian armoured vehicles are seen advancing down a country road.
The video concluded with soldiers of the 128th separate assault brigade standing in front of a colonnaded building with Ukrainian flags and saying they have liberated the village.
Reuters was able to confirm the location of the video but could not independently verify the date.
The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces wrote on Facebook that anti-aircraft units had shot down four cruise missiles and four Iranian-made drones in the past 24 hours.
It said Russia had shelled more than a dozen towns and villages in the Zaporizhzhia region, including Piatykhatky.
Reuters could not verify the battlefield claims.
The reported capture of the villages reflects the incremental nature of the gains so far for Ukraine along lines Moscow has spent months strengthening.
Piatykhatky is significant, however, as it lies about 90km from the coast.
Zelensky said he would continue talks with Western allies to get weapons and ammunition to them as soon as possible.
Russia, hoping to dent Western resolve, said it had repelled numerous assaults.
It released a video showing what its troops say is captured Western equipment, in this case a French-made tank reportedly seized in the eastern Donetsk region.
It did not mention Piatykhatky.
Ukraine has acknowledged attacks along several parts of the 1000km-long front line in its long-anticipated counteroffensive to retake the 18 per cent of its territory occupied by Russia but carefully controls information for security reasons.
Analysts say the main phase of the counteroffensive is yet to begin.
– AAP
