Russian forces take control of village in eastern Ukraine

Russian troops took control of the village of Pishchane in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine, the TASS state news agency reported on Monday, citing the defence ministry.

Russian forces are bypassing a key stronghold in eastern Ukraine that they have fought for months to capture and are focusing instead on cutting supply lines to it, a Ukrainian official said Monday.

Russian troops are going around the vital logistics hub of Pokrovsk, where a steadfast Ukrainian defence has kept them at bay, and are taking aim at a highway that leads from there to the central Ukraine city of Dnipro, Maj Viktor Trehubov, a local Ukrainian army spokesperson said.

That route is crucial for supplies feeding Ukrainian forces in the entire region. Cutting the highway traffic would also severely weaken Pokrovsk.

“So far, they have not achieved their goal and (Ukrainian forces) are working to ensure that they do not achieve it in the future — just as they have not been successful in other attempts to bypass the city,” Trehubov said in a WhatsApp message.

Ukraine's army is under severe strain along parts of the approximately 1,000-km front line, especially in the eastern Donetsk region where Pokrovsk is located. After almost three years of war, Ukrainian units are depleted and are outnumbered by Russian forces.