Russia's Defense Ministry reported on Saturday that its troops had captured two additional settlements in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk province, pushing their incremental advance along the 1,000-kilometer front. The two recently captured villages, Kleban-Byk and Seredne, are northwest of the beleaguered town of Toretsk and close to the administrative boundary with Kharkiv region, both of which have been subjected to constant Russian pressure over the past several months.
Only a day ago, Moscow declared that it had captured three more villages, Katerynivka, Rusyn Yar, and another village near Kostiantynivka, another city under intense attack.
Ukraine's armed forces, however, have resisted the Russian account. Without admitting the loss of any ground, Kyiv's General Staff confirmed Katerynivka was being attacked but maintained its troops were holding their position. In another statement, Ukrainian officials claimed troops had reclaimed the settlement of Zelenyi Hai, on the outskirts of the Dnipropetrovsk region, although they acknowledged that the territory was coming under renewed attack from Russians.
Ukraine's HUR military intelligence branch also reported combined operations with army units to drive back Russian advances, both in Donetsk and in efforts to push into Dnipropetrovsk.
Ever since Moscow's unsuccessful attempt to take Kyiv in the first few weeks of its invasion in 2022, efforts have been focused on grabbing the Donbas region, including Donetsk and Luhansk. The conflict has turned into a war of attrition, with villages changing several times as intense fighting has taken place.
The recent news highlights the unstable character of the war. While Russia is repeating claims of incremental gains on the ground, Ukraine at the same time is winning back lost ground and strengthening defensive lines. As each side increases efforts, the east front continues to be the center of a war that refuses to slow down.
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