Kyiv recaptures four villages in Donetsk as Ukraine's counter-offensive begins

In what might be the first gains since Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky gave the strongest indication yet that Kyiv’s long-awaited pushback of Russian troops has begun,Kyiv announced on Sunday that Ukrainian forces had retaken three villages in the eastern region of Donetsk. Ukraine, on Monday (June 12) also claimed that itrecaptured a fourth village in a cluster of settlements in the country'ssoutheast region.

“The settlements of Blahodatne and Makarivka were liberated,” Ukraine's deputy defence minister HannaMaliarsaid in anupdate on Telegram.

A third village,Neskuchne, was also claimed by a Ukrainian army brigade on Sunday, though Kyiv defence leaders are yet to comment on the development. Russian military bloggers havemade unofficial reportsthat Neskuchne has been recaptured by Ukraine's troops, reports CNN.

Video footage posted onlineshowed soldiers holding up the Ukrainian flag inDonetsk region's Storozheve with the defence minister thankingthe 35th Separate Brigade of Marines for regaining control of the village.

This comes after Zelensky said that the “relevant counter-offensive defensive actions are taking place in Ukraine,” on Saturday. “Neskuchne of the Donetsk region is under the Ukrainian flag again,” said the state border guard, along with a video of Ukrainian troops announcing the takeover.

Ukrainian soldiers were also seen shouting Kyiv’s traditional battle cries such as “Glory to Ukraine!” and reportedly derided Russian President Vladimir Putin.

This was hours after Ukrainian Land Forces announced that soldiers of the 68th Separate Hunting Brigade had retaken the village of Blahodatne in the Donetsk region.

The video showed soldiers hoisting a Ukrainian flag over a destroyed building. The Ukrainian government also has released a video for the third consecutive weekend that subtly acknowledges, without directly mentioning, the summer counteroffensive against Russia.

The most recent video features Kyrylo Budanov, the head of military intelligence, sitting silently at his desk, gazing into the camera and after 20 seconds or so the words “More to Come” appear, which is followed by the slogan, “Plans Love Silence.” The recurring theme seems to point to the Kyiv government’s efforts symbolising the importance of maintaining silence.

Russia blows up another dam

Ukraine has accused Russia of blowingup another dam in the Zaporizhzhia region, following the destruction of the major Nova Kakhovka on Monday, which caused widespread flooding.

Ukraine says the dam was blown up by Russian forces, who have controlled it since February 2022.

Valeriy Shershen, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian military, said Moscow's forces had chosen to blow up a second dam near the village of Novodarivka, which "led to the flooding on both banks of the Mokri Yaly river", Kyiv Independent reported.

Russia, Ukraine prisonerswap

The Russian defence ministry, on Telegram, announced 94 Russian servicemen “who were in mortal danger” are being released after negotiations and will be taken to medical institutes for examination.

Head of Ukraine’s presidential administration, Andriy Yermak, said 95 Ukrainian troops had been returned by the Russians. The Ukrainian official also said that some of them were injured and among those who returned were also members of the national guard and border guards.

Is Russia taking control of Wagner?

Yevgeny Prigozhin, chief of Russia's Wagner mercenary, on Sunday, said his fighters would not sign any contract with the country’s Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu.

This comes after the Russian defence ministry on Saturday said Shoigu had ordered all “volunteer detachments” to sign contracts with his ministry by the end of the month. According to the defence ministry, it is in a bid to increase the effectiveness of the Russian army.

Ukraine's counter-offensive against Russia underway

While no particular group or forces were mentioned by the ministry, the move is being seen as an attempt to take direct control of Wagner. However, Prigozhin, in response to a request for comment on the matter said, “Wagner will not sign any contracts with Shoigu,” adding that the order did not apply to Wagner.

This comes as the Wagner chief has repeatedly criticised the Russian military brass for incompetence and deliberately undersupplying Wagner fighters in Ukraine. “Shoigu cannot properly manage military formation,” said Wagner chief.

He also went on to say that his group is well integrated with the Russian military and its effectiveness would be affected if they are required to report to the defence minister.

Russia said it hit Leopard tanks, Bradley vehicles and Ukrainian fighter jet

Earlier, on Sunday, Russia claimed that it destroyed at least seven German-made Leopard tanks and five United States-made Bradley vehicles in the past 48 hours while repelling Ukrainian attacks.

It also later claimed that it had successfully taken down a Ukrainian Su-25 fighter jet in the Kherson region. Russian forces have also repelled three Ukrainian attacks in the Zaporizhzhia region, the ministry said.

(With inputs from agencies)

Disclaimer: A number of claims and counterclaims are being made on the Ukraine-Russia conflict on the ground and online. While WION takes utmost care to accurately report this developing news story, we cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, photos and videos.

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