Russia’s Defense Ministry is claiming that its forces are now making headway in the southern Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine after a string of recent battlefield gains on the eastern front.
On Jan. 22, Moscow said its troops were consolidating their positions after a fresh offensive across the Zaporizhzhia front, which has remained largely static for the past several months.
Days earlier, pro-Russian officials said that Russian forces had taken “operational control” over four settlements near Zaporizhzhia’s city of Orikhiv.
However, Ukrainian officials say the Russian claims are exaggerated.
Ukrainian service members observe an area at a position near a frontline, in Zaporizhzhia Region, Ukraine, on Aug.18, 2022. (Dmytro Smolienko/Reuters)
Most of Zaporizhzhia was captured in the opening weeks of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, which began 11 months ago. Currently, roughly 70 percent of the region is under Russian control, although the city of Zaporizhzhia, the regional capital, remains in Ukrainian hands….