The Russian Defense Ministry said on May 15 that during the offensive in eastern Ukraine, Russian forces had taken two more settlements.
The Russian Defense Ministry said that the Russian army has captured the village of Novooleksandriveka, located near Pokrovsk - the logistics hub that Russia has been trying to occupy for many months.
Together with Novooleksandriveka, Russia has taken control of Torske - a settlement further northeast, near two cities that Moscow aims to occupy in the long term: Sloviansk and Kramatorsk.
However, Kiev did not confirm this information. The Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian army said that the fighting was still fierce across the entire 1,100 km frontline.
In its report that evening, the Ukrainian Military General Staff only listed Novooleksandrivka as one of more than 10 areas attacked by Russia and did not mention the area having fallen. The General Staff of the Ukrainian Military Command did not comment on Torske. According to the famous military blog DeepState, Russian forces tried to take Torske but were pushed back.
The Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian army, Oleksandr Syrskyi, affirmed that Kiev wants to achieve a "fair peace", but is still facing a "fiery struggle on the front line of about 1,100 km".
In a Telegram post about his presentation at the Ukraine- NATO Council meeting, Syrskyi pointed out that Russia has turned the conflict in Ukraine into a fruitless war, mobilizing a combined force of up to 640,000 troops.
Russia launched a military campaign in Ukraine in February 2022 and is controlling about a fifth of Ukraine's territory.
After failing to capture Kiev in the first weeks of the conflict, Russia has shifted its offensive to the Donbass region in eastern Ukraine, including the two provinces of Donetsk and Lugansk.
Over the past few months, Russia has gradually taken over each village, but Ukrainian forces have also achieved some results in blocking the enemy's advance, especially around the Pokrovsk area.
The war in Ukraine continues in the context of peace negotiations between the Russian and Ukrainian delegations held in Turkey. This is the first direct dialogue between the two sides since March 2022. However, the hope of a breakthrough is not high.
