Russia announced on Saturday that it has taken control of a new town in eastern Ukraine, continuing its slow advance over the past months without achieving a significant breakthrough at this stage.
The Russian Ministry of Defense stated in its daily report, “Units of the Central Group of Forces have liberated the town of Luhovatskoye.”
This town is located east of the city of Pokrovsk in the Ocheretyn sector, where Russian forces have advanced relatively quickly in recent months.
Russia has been gaining more ground since the failure of the major Ukrainian counteroffensive in the summer of 2023 and the fall of Avdiivka in February.
The Russian forces are facing a Ukrainian army struggling with a shortage of weapons and ammunition as Western aid dwindles and recruitment challenges persist.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba stated this week that Kyiv is ready to negotiate peace with Russia if it acts “in good faith.”
Moscow, however, has pointed to “contradictory” statements from Ukrainian officials on this topic. Russian President Vladimir Putin has suggested that Ukraine cede four regions to Russia and abandon the idea of joining NATO in exchange for ending the war.
In related news, Ukrainska Pravda reported on Saturday, citing a source in Ukrainian military intelligence, that Ukrainian drones struck a Russian Tu-22M3 strategic bomber at a military airfield in northern Russia.
“Following an operation by Ukrainian military intelligence near Olenegorsk, a long-range hypersonic bomber Tu-22M3 was hit at the Olenya military airbase, the strategic aviation base of the Russian occupiers,” the source said. No further details were provided.
The newspaper noted that the airfield, from which Russian strategic bombers launch missile attacks on Ukraine, is located 1,800 kilometers from the Ukrainian border.
Separately, the Ukrainian Air Force announced on Saturday that its air defenses shot down four attack drones and a missile launched by Russia during an overnight assault.
“Ukrainian defense forces shot down all targets in the Dnipro, Poltava, Kharkiv, and Kyiv regions,” the military stated.
On Friday, Ukraine reported that its missile forces had struck a Russian military airfield in Crimea used for launching long-range attacks. This is the latest in a series of targeted strikes against the Russian military in the occupied peninsula.
Ukraine has intensified its long-range attacks on Crimea in recent months, forcing the Russian Black Sea Fleet, headquartered in Sevastopol, to relocate its warships to a safer port.
The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces confirmed in a statement that the Russian airfield in Saky, western Crimea, was the latest target, adding that the results are being assessed.
“This is one of the operational airfields used by Russia to control airspace over the Black Sea and launch airstrikes on Ukrainian territory,” the statement read.
While the statement did not specify the weapon used, it indicated that the attack was carried out by Ukrainian missile forces along with other units. There has been no comment yet from the Russian Ministry of Defense or local officials.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky acknowledged the strike in his nightly video address, praising the soldiers “who are targeting Russian bases and logistical hubs.”
After nearly two and a half years of war, Ukraine claims to have hit a series of Russian air defense systems in Crimea in recent months, including S-300 and S-400 units.
Ukraine also reports having destroyed or damaged 27 Russian warships in the Black Sea and near Crimea during the conflict.
