Moscow [Russia], January 20: Russia's Defense Ministry said yesterday it had taken control of three more villages in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk province, marking the latest victory in a steady westward advance in the special operations zone.
According to TASS, the Russian forces have just taken control of Petropavlivka, a village located between the cities of Pokrovsk and Kurakhove, which have been the focus of fighting in recent months. The Russian side also took Vremivka, a small town further south of Donetsk , and the village of Vozdvyzhenka, also in the province.
Ukraine has not commented on the information, only saying that fierce fighting is taking place near the important city of Pokrovsk. Reuters quoted Viktor Trehubov, a spokesman for the Khortytsya force of the Ukrainian army , as saying that the Russian side has not yet entered Pokrovsk. Pokrovsk is a transport hub and the only place with coke mines in the whole of Ukraine.
On the same day, the Russian Defense Ministry said that its units used high-precision weapons to attack Ukrainian military facilities, in response to Ukraine's recent firing of ATACMS (American-made Army Tactical Missile System) missiles into Belgorod, southern Russia. In a related development, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said on January 18 that Berlin could consider deploying forces to participate in a peacekeeping mission to monitor a ceasefire agreement if one exists between Russia and Ukraine, the Suddeutsche Zeitung newspaper reported.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper
