Russia on Monday announced a key breakthrough in eastern Ukraine, saying its forces have captured the “important logistics hub” of Kurakhove, following months of steady gains.
Russian forces “have fully liberated the town of Kurakhove — the biggest settlement in southwestern Donbas,” the Defense Ministry (MoD) announced on Telegram.
The MoD claimed further that the Ukrainian army had lost more than 12,000 of the 15,000 troops deployed to defend Kurakhove, figures which are not independently verifiable. The military also said Ukraine lost about “3,000 pieces of various weapons and military hardware, including 40 tanks and other armored combat vehicles.”