Ukrainian forces announced on Sunday that they had regained control of a village from Russian troops in southeastern Ukraine, marking the first settlement claimed to be liberated since the start of their counteroffensive several days ago. Soldiers raised the Ukrainian flag on a building damaged by previous shelling in an unverified video released by the 68th Ukrainian Brigade, stating that the village is located in the Donetsk region. A spokesperson for one of the Ukrainian army sectors mentioned on television, "We see the first results of the counteroffensive movements." The village is situated on the outskirts of both the Donetsk and Zaporizhia regions, just a few kilometers south of the village of Velyka Novosilka, which is under Kyiv's control.
Russia announced on Sunday that it had destroyed at least seven German-made Leopard tanks and five American-made Bradley armored vehicles within 48 hours while repelling Ukrainian attacks. However, Russian bloggers reported that Ukraine briefly breached part of the Russian frontline. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky acknowledged on Saturday that his army was engaged in "offensive and defensive operations," a day after Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that Russia had repelled the initial attacks of the counteroffensive.
The Russian Defense Ministry claimed it repelled more than ten Ukrainian attacks over the past day in three main directions and destroyed a column of armored vehicles belonging to the 128th Mountain Assault Brigade in the Zaporizhia region. It added, "Over the past day, the Armed Forces of Ukraine continued their unsuccessful attempts to conduct offensive operations in the directions of Donetsk, southern Donetsk, and Zaporizhia."
Video footage circulated showing Russian drones bombing tanks housing Ukrainian soldiers in the Zaporizhia region. Military bloggers indicated that Ukrainian forces had breached a portion of the Russian lines south of Velyka Novosilka and temporarily seized several villages as Russian troops retreated to elevated positions. Vladimir Rogov, an official appointed by Russia in the controlled part of the Zaporizhia region, stated that Russian forces later recaptured the villages.
Ukraine reports achieving gains near Bakhmut, which was seized by Russia last month. The Russian Defense Ministry released several videos and photos in recent days showing Russian forces conducting airstrikes on armored vehicles and tanks containing Ukrainians from Kamov Ka-50 attack helicopters and drones. On Sunday, the Russian Defense Ministry noted that "Ukraine made a failed attempt to attack a ship belonging to the Russian Black Sea Fleet using six high-speed unmanned boats, which were protecting natural gas pipeline lines." The ministry pointed out that the vessel "Bryazovi" was monitoring the situation along the "TurkStream" and "Blue Stream" pipelines in the Black Sea.
