(Moscow) Russia claimed Monday the capture of two new villages in eastern Ukraine, where it continues its slow push, but was itself affected by power cuts in border areas after Ukrainian bombings .
The Russian forces, who are taking advantage of the Ukrainian army’s difficulties in replenishing its ranks and obtaining more arms and ammunition from the West, have been nibbling away for months. Since Saturday, they have claimed the conquest of five villages in several sectors of the front.
According to the daily report of the Ministry of Defense on Monday, Russian forces seized the village of Novopokrovské in the Donetsk region (east) and that of Sepova Novoselivka in the Kharkiv region (north-east).
The first is located near the Ocheretyne salient, where Russian troops have made rapid gains in recent weeks, and the second in the direction of Kupiansk, one of the objectives of the Russian offensive in the northeast.
On Saturday and Sunday, the Russian army had already claimed the capture of three other villages, including that of Shumy, near the mining town of Toretsk, another current axis of attack of the Russian forces in the east.
The Ukrainian authorities announced in this context on Monday that they had evacuated more than 700 residents of Toretsk, but nearly 5,000 people remain in the city and “many of them are trying to evacuate,” the Ukrainian authorities said on Telegram. National Police.
Power cuts in Russia
Toretsk residents interviewed last week by AFP reported dozens of daily Russian bombings on the city, which until recently was relatively spared from hostilities. The city represents an important barrier for access to Kramatorsk, the Kremlin’s ultimate objective in Donbass.
Two elderly women were killed and eight other people were injured in a Russian bombardment using Hurricane rockets on the town of Ukrainsk in the Donetsk region, which damaged an administrative building and buildings, according to the Ukrainian Prosecutor’s Office. houses.
On the Russian side, Ukrainian strikes caused power and water cuts in the border region of Belgorod on Monday, and could affect others, according to local authorities.
“In Belgorod since this morning there have been restrictions on energy supplies. Some parts of the city are experiencing interruptions in water supply,” Mayor Valentin Demidov said on Telegram.
The governor of the Belgorod region, Vyacheslav Gladkov, reported multiple Ukrainian drone attacks hitting energy infrastructure and homes. A four-year-old girl was killed and seven people injured, according to the same source.
Authorities in the neighboring regions of Kursk and Voronezh indicated that outages were also possible after these strikes.
Peace plans
“Due to technical failures on power lines in neighboring regions, a shortage of electricity capacity may occur in the Kursk region,” Alexei Smirnov said on Telegram.
The Russian Defense Ministry reported shooting down 36 Ukrainian drones overnight.
Russia has also stepped up its attacks on Ukrainian power plants in recent months, causing power outages across the country. According to President Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine has lost half of its energy capacity as a result of these strikes.
Ukraine has been on the defensive on the front since the failure of its major counter-offensive last summer and the fall of the Avdiivka fortress in February. She called on the West to urgently provide new anti-aircraft systems to defend against Russian strikes.
At the end of June, Mr. Zelensky assured that he was working on a new plan to end the conflict, with the aim of it being “supported by the majority” of the international community.
His counterpart Vladimir Putin has put forward his own solution: that Ukraine cede five regions partially occupied by Moscow and renounce joining NATO. De facto a demand for capitulation, rejected in Kyiv as well as by the West.