Russia claimed its forces captured the key eastern Ukrainian city of Kostiantynivka yesterday.
Chief of the General Staff General Valery Gerasimov described the city as “one of the main defensive hubs of the enemy within the Sloviansk-Kramatorsk-Kostiantynivka fortified area”.
The Russian military had long deemed the capture of the city crucial to its advance through the Donetsk region.
Kyiv, however, categorically denied that Russian forces had captured Kostiantynivka. “We deny this. These are more fake claims,” the military said today.
Meanwhile, Russian president Vladimir Putin said that targeted strikes on Ukraine’s military-industrial complex “must continue”, two days after his forces launched their largest aerial attack of the war on Kyiv.
Missile and drone attacks on Ukraine continued overnight, leaving four people dead and 10 injured.
“I note that massive, coordinated strikes against the infrastructure of Ukraine’s military-industrial complex and the facilities supporting its operation must continue,” Putin said.
