Ukrainian forces have recaptured the village of Piatykhatky in the southeastern Dnipropetrovsk region and advanced 7 km into Russian defenses, recapturing a total of 113 square km of territory after two weeks of counterattacks, said Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar.
Ukraine is focusing on counter-offensives in the city of Mariupol in the Kharkiv region and some areas in the Donetsk region in the conflict with Russia. Photo: Reuters
"In two weeks of offensive operations in the direction of Berdiansk and Melitopol, eight settlements were liberated," Maliar said on Telegram, referring to two cities on the Russian-occupied coast.
Two videos released by the Ukrainian armed forces on Telegram show what they say are their advances to retake the village of Piatykhatky, including some attacks on Russian positions.
The video ends with Ukrainian soldiers standing in front of a building with a row of Ukrainian flags and saying they have liberated the village. "Today, June 18, the forces of the 128th Brigade liberated the village of Piatykhatky...", the video says.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine wrote on Facebook that air defense units shot down four cruise missiles and four Iranian-made drones in the past 24 hours.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised the military's efforts and said he would continue talks with Western allies to provide them with weapons and ammunition as soon as possible.
Meanwhile, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman General Igor Konashenkov said on Monday that Russian forces had carried out multiple strikes with precision weapons at sea targeting Ukrainian military storage sites for foreign-aid equipment.
"Overnight, Russian forces carried out several strikes with long-range precision weapons at sea against locations storing foreign-made military equipment. All designated targets were destroyed," Konashenkov said.
According to Mr. Konashenkov, Russian air defense forces shot down a Ukrainian Mi-8 helicopter in the Zaporizhzhia region, neutralized two Ukrainian attack groups and killed about 45 Ukrainian soldiers in Kupiansk, Kharkiv in the past day.
Mr. Konashenkov added that Russian forces repelled several Ukrainian counterattacks in the Donetsk region, intercepted five rockets from the US-made HIMARS missile launch system and shot down 14 Ukrainian drones in the past day.
Huy Hoang (according to TASS, Reuters, CNA)
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