Russia continues to gain ground in eastern Ukraine.
Moscow claimed on Tuesday to have captured a village near the city of Donetsk, already under its control, the day after an announcement by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky who claimed to have “stopped” the Russian advance.
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“In the Donetsk direction, units of the Southern grouping of forces liberated the village of Nevelské and occupied more favorable lines and positions,” the Russian Defense Ministry said in its daily report.
The Telegram channel DeepState, close to the Ukrainian army and followed by more than 680,000 people, also indicated Monday evening that “the enemy has advanced near Nevelské”.
Hundreds of kilometers of fortifications
Russian forces have been advancing for weeks in eastern Ukraine, a trend that accelerated with the fall of the fortress town of Avdiivka, taken by Moscow in mid-February.
The announcement of the capture of the village comes the day after an interview in French media with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, in which he assured that "Russia's advance has been stopped" in the East and that the situation was currently “much better” on the front than three months ago.
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Ukraine has committed to building hundreds of kilometers of defensive fortifications to stop the Russian advance, but criticism has emerged that they are weak or even absent in some areas.