Russia takes control of Staromaiorske in eastern Ukraine, Defence Ministry says
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Soldiers carrying out stabilisation operations in the village of Staromayorske, Donetsk, Ukraine.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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MOSCOW - The Russian military has taken control of the village of Staromaiorske in the Donetsk region of Ukraine, the Russian Defence Ministry said on June 10.
Ukraine’s military made no such acknowledgment in a report issued late on June 10. It said Russian forces had tried to move forward near Staromaiorske and a nearby village, Vodiane, “but were unsuccessful. The defence forces control the situation”.
Both villages lie south-west of the Russian-held main town in the region, also called Donetsk.
A popular Ukrainian war blog, DeepState, said Russian troops had made advances around Staromaiorske.
Reuters could not independently verify battlefield reports from either side.
Russia has made incremental gains in Donetsk region, a focal point along the 1,000km-long front line, since capturing the key town of Avdiivka in February after many months of heavy fighting.
The loss of the Staromaiorske village is a symbolic blow to Kyiv, as it is one of the few Ukraine managed to recapture in 2023 in a largely lacklustre counter-offensive.
Staromaiorske is on the southern front of the Donetsk region, one of the four regions Moscow claimed to have annexed in 2022 and where some of the fiercest fighting is now taking place.
Russia President Vladimir Putin told an economic forum last week that Russia had seized 47 Ukrainian towns and villages so far in 2024.
That includes gains in the north-eastern Kharkiv region where Moscow launched a major ground assault in May, causing thousands of Ukrainians to evacuate and further stretching Kyiv’s forces. REUTERS, AFP
