Russia declares battlefield gains as NATO ramps up support for Ukraine
In the east of Ukraine, Russia claimed to have breached two heavily constructed defense lines, and Western allies promised to provide military supplies to Kyiv as it gets ready to launch a counteroffensive.
In recent weeks, Russia has stepped up its attacks across southern and eastern Ukraine with the support of tens of thousands of reservists who were called up in December. As the first anniversary of its invasion approaches, a significant new offensive is widely anticipated.
“The enemy’s offensive in the east is still going on, with 24-hour attacks,” stated Hanna Malyar, deputy minister of defense for Ukraine.
“The atmosphere is strained. But the enemy is suffering very severe losses at the hands of our warriors, who are preventing them from achieving their objectives.
Earlier, the Russian Defense Ministry said that Ukrainian forces had fled the Luhansk region in response to Russian operations, but it provided no further information, and Reuters was unable to independently confirm this and other reports from the battlefield.
The ministry posted on Telegram that during the operation, Ukrainian troops “randomly retreated to a distance of up to 3 km (2 miles) from the previously seized lines.”
Even the enemy’s second, more heavily reinforced line of defense was unable to stop the Russian military’s advance.
The offensive took place somewhere in Luhansk, but the government did not say where. The Donbas, the industrial hub of Ukraine, is made up of the Luhansk and Donetsk regions. Russia is currently occupying part of this region and seeks to regain control.
The military administration in Kyiv said that six Russian balloons that may have been carrying reconnaissance gear were shot down after air raid sirens sounded.
It stated on the Telegram messaging app that “the goal of the balloon launches was possibly to identify and exhaust our air defenses.” Russia did not respond right away.
