Ukraine admitted today for the first time that Russian troops have entered the Dnipropetrovsk region, where Moscow has claimed to have been advancing since July, reported Agence France-Presse, quoted by BTA.
"Yes, they have entered" this territory, where "fighting is currently taking place", Viktor Trehubov, a spokesman for the Ukrainian army in the region, told AFP. Kiev has so far denied any Russian offensive there.
Russia has captured two villages in southeastern Ukraine's Dnipropetrovsk region, Ukrainian researchers confirmed to publicly available sources, as Kremlin troops continue their offensive amid stalled diplomatic efforts to end the war, Reuters noted.
Ukrainian troops, outnumbered and outgunned, are struggling to repel a Russian advance across much of the country's east as Moscow steps up pressure on Kiev to cede territory as part of any peace talks.
Russian forces are now occupying the villages of Zaporizhzhia and Novogeorgievka, the website "DeepState", which monitors the battlefield, reported. The Defense Ministry in Moscow earlier said its forces had captured both villages.
The Ukrainian military today dismissed as false reports that Russian troops had occupied the villages.
"The Russians have entered (there) and are trying to establish control," Ukrainian military spokesman Viktor Trehubov told Reuters, referring to Zaporizhzhia and Novogeorgievka. "Our forces are fighting to hold their positions," he added.
Russian forces said in July they had captured their first village in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, which is not among the five Ukrainian regions that Russia claims as its territory.
The "DeepState" map shows that at least two other villages in the Dnipropetrovsk region are occupied or the site of fighting, relatively small areas in a region of more than 31,000 square kilometers.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has previously dismissed the significance of Russia's offensive in the region, describing it last month as aimed at achieving a "media victory".