Russia claims capture of five villages in Kharkiv province, Ukraine denies

The Russian army claims to have captured five villages in Kharkiv province. This would concern the towns of Pletenivka, Ohirtseve, Borysivka, Pylna and Striletsjna. These are all located in a “gray zone” on the border of Kharkiv and Russia. Ukraine contradicts this and says it will repel Russian attacks.

According to the governor of Kharkiv, Oleh Synyehubov, there is fighting in some of the villages that Russia claims to have captured. But he says the situation on the region’s northern and northeastern borders is “fully under control”.

“The enemy tried to advance in other directions within the region and looked for weak positions on the border, but all attempts were prevented by the armed forces,” the governor said.

The city of Kharkiv would also not be in danger, the governor said on Telegram. There is still heavy fighting in the region near the border with Russia, but a ground offensive against the city is not imminent, he claims. “There is no threat of a ground operation in Kharkiv.” He adds that 1,775 people in the province have been evacuated from their homes due to Russian attacks.

Request military assistance

The Ukrainian army reported on Friday that Russia appeared to have started a new ground offensive in the region around Kharkiv. Then the border town of Vovchansk, about 50 kilometers northeast of Kharkiv and five kilometers from the Russian border, was attacked from Russian territory.

According to Russian bloggers, Moscow may want to create a buffer zone in the area. President Putin already said this year that he wants to do that, in order to stop the Ukrainian attacks on the Russian city of Belgorod.

Ukrainian President Zelensky confirmed that evening that Russian forces have increased their activity in the region. He called on Western allies to quickly send promised deliveries of military aid to the front lines. “It is critical that our allies support our fighters and Ukrainian resilience with timely deliveries,” he said in a video statement on X.

Attacks on Luhansk and Donetsk

Ukraine has rushed reinforcements to the region, local authorities said. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, Ukrainian forces have launched drones and missiles over the Russian regions of Belgorod, Kursk and Volgograd. Air defense systems are said to have downed 21 missiles and 16 drones.

In addition, a Moscow-installed regional director of the occupied Luhansk region reports that a new attack on an oil depot has killed four people and injured eight others.

A regional director of the Donetsk region, also annexed by Russia, reports that three people have been killed by an explosion in a restaurant. Eight others were injured. The claims of the regional administrators cannot be verified.

Relatively quiet

The city of Kharkiv is the second largest city in Ukraine, where approximately 1.4 million people lived before the war. Russia has stepped up air raids on the city in recent months. Ukraine retook the area around the city in the autumn offensive in 2022. Until a few months ago it was relatively quiet, most of the fighting took place further to the east.