As the conflict with Russia continues, Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar said that Ukrainian forces had recaptured seven villages in the past week.
In a post on Telegram, Maliar stated that the “advance of the offensive troops amounted to 6.5 kilometres” in Donetsk and Tavria. She further said, “The area taken under control amounted to 90 square kilometres.” According to Maliar, the liberated villages include Lobkove, Levadne, Novodarivka, Neskuchne, Storozheve, Makarivka, and Blahodatne.
Earlier, Ukraine’s Tavria Defense Forces shared a video on Facebook that showed soldiers holding up the Ukrainian flag in Storozheve, claiming to have recaptured the village in Donetsk. It is not clear when the video was shot. The Tavria Forces said in the post: “The national flag is flying again over Storozheve, and it will be the same with every settlement until we liberate all Ukrainian land.”
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in his nightly address on Monday said that fighting is fierce. However, he noted that Ukrainian forces are “moving forward” and recapturing territory. “The enemy’s losses are exactly what we need,” Zelenskyy said. The Ukrainian President noted that the “most important and hottest” operations regions are in Tavria and the Khortytsia directions. Zelenskyy said that he had received reports from commanders in those areas on Monday.
He said that the General of the Ukrainian Land Forces and the General of the Tavria operational-strategic group reported the “success we have achieved, on the front areas where we need to reinforce and on the actions we can take to break more Russian positions.”
Ukraine continues to stress that it is maintaining and strengthening its operational dominance. He further said, “I am particularly grateful for Bakhmut as we are increasing our control in this area.” A spokesperson for the Eastern Grouping of the Ukrainian Armed Forces had earlier announced that Ukrainian forces had made “incremental gains” in the eastern city.