Russia Claims Control of Three Villages in Eastern Ukraine Amid Ongoing Conflicts

On Friday, Russia announced that it had seized control of three villages in Ukraine’s Dnipropetrovsk and Kharkiv regions, including territories that Kyiv had regained three years prior during a surprise counteroffensive.

The Russian military reported the capture of the villages of Pishchane and Tykhe in Kharkiv, as well as Pryvillia in Dnipropetrovsk.

The Russian army is advancing step by step through eastern Ukraine, engaging in costly battles for small settlements that have been largely destroyed by conflict since February 2022, and now have minimal populations.

Ukraine had successfully reclaimed significant portions of the Kharkiv region, including Pishchane, during a rapid offensive in autumn 2022, prompting Russia to implement a military draft for the first time since World War II.

However, Russian troops are gradually making progress again, aiming to encircle Kupiansk, a crucial logistics hub that was a key victory for Ukraine during the 2022 counteroffensive.

The ongoing Russian offensive has resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands and has ravaged extensive areas of eastern Ukraine, causing millions to flee their homes.

On Friday, a report from the Moscow-installed governor stated that «two adults and a 10-year-old child were killed due to heavy shelling of a residential area» in the Russian-occupied region of Kherson. In contrast, Kyiv reported that «one individual was killed and 14 others were injured from Russian shelling» in the region under Ukrainian control.

Additionally, Russia launched an assault involving 70 drones overnight, shortly after President Vladimir Putin held a phone conversation with U.S. President Donald Trump, where they discussed plans for a new summit.

The Russian military claimed it had intercepted 61 Ukrainian drones during the night, primarily in Russia’s western regions and the annexed Crimean peninsula.