Ukraine claims it made gains around Bakhmut and says nearly 200 Russian soldiers were killed within the last day
A Ukrainian soldier rides a Swedish CV90 infantry fighting vehicle near Bakhmut on June 25. Roman Chop/AP
Frontlines across Ukraine have seen heavy combat over the past two days, with more than 20 engagements occurring in areas in the Donetsk region – chiefly Lyman, Marinka and Bakhmut, according to the Ukrainian military.
In its operational update, the General Staff said the Russians also carried out 25 air strikes over the past day.
There had been heavy Russian artillery and mortar fire in the Kupyansk area of Kharkiv, where the Russians have been trying to break through for over a month, the Ukrainians said.
The General Staff insisted all Russian efforts to take territory had been foiled. Across the Donetsk frontlines, the fighting was characterized by exchanges of indirect fire, but with little movement.
However, the Ukrainians say they are on the front foot around Bakhmut.
“(Troops) hold the initiative, continue assault operations and push the enemy back. Over the last day, the Ukrainian forces advanced 600 to 1,000 meters on the southern and northern flanks around Bakhmut,” said Serhii Cherevatyi, spokesperson for the Eastern Grouping of the Armed Forces.
Nearly 200 Russian soldiers had been killed in the last day, and a variety of Russian equipment had been destroyed, according to Cherevatyi.
CNN cannot verify Ukrainian claims of battlefield gains, or casualties.
In the south, where Ukrainian forces have attempted to break through Russian lines, the General Staff said a Russian effort to regain lost positions in the area of Novodarivka had also failed.
Russian artillery continued to strike about 30 settlements along the frontlines in the Zaporizhzhia region, it said.
In Kherson, Nataliya Humenyuk, a spokesperson for Ukrainian forces in the south, said the Russians struggled to regain positions on the east bank of the river Dnipro, which was flooded by the recent damage to the dam at Nova Kakhovka.
Source: CNN
