Ukraine claims new gains in early phase of counteroffensive
- A total of seven villages in the southeast are said to have been recaptured from Moscow’s forces in the most rapid advance in seven months
- But Ukraine faces an uphill task, as Russia has more men, ammunition and air power, and has had months to build deep defensive fortifications
Ukraine said on Monday its troops had recaptured seven villages from Russian forces along an approximately 100km (60-mile) front in the southeast since launching its long-anticipated counteroffensive last week.
The task of ending Moscow’s occupation of southern and eastern Ukraine is daunting, given Russia’s numerical superiority in men, ammunition and air power, and the many months it has had to build deep defensive fortifications.
On Monday, soldiers were seen in video holding the Ukrainian flag in the village of Storozheve, along the Mokri Yaly river which flows northward out of Russian-held territory. Reuters confirmed the location.
A day earlier Kyiv said its forces heading south had liberated three other nearby villages along the Mokri Yaly: Blahodatne, Neskuchne and Makarivka.
Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar said in a Telegram post late on Monday that Ukrainian forces had also recaptured Levadne and Novodarivka, around 10km (six miles) west of the Mokri Yaly, as well as Lobkove, southeast of the city of Zaporizhzhia.