MOSCOW: Russian forces have advanced further to the west after taking control of the Ukrainian town of Avdiivka, the defense ministry said on Friday.
It said Russian forces had also destroyed a number of Western-provided Ukrainian weapons in the past week including seven British-supplied Storm Shadow cruise missiles, a US Patriot anti-aircraft guided missile and launch vehicle, and 42 HIMARS rockets fired by multiple launch systems.
Reuters could not independently verify battlefield reports.
The frontlines in the war, which started two years ago on Saturday, had not shifted substantially since late 2022 before the taking of Avdiivka, and Russia still controls just under a fifth of Ukrainian territory.
The capture of Avdiivka, following months of fighting with heavy casualties on both sides, was Russia鈥檚 first significant gain since taking the city of Bakhmut last May.
After taking Avdiivka, units of the 鈥淐enter鈥� group of Russian forces 鈥渃ontinued advancing in a westerly direction,鈥� the defense ministry statement said.
鈥淚n cooperation with aviation and artillery, they defeated accumulations of manpower and equipment of the Ukrainian Armed Forces鈥� in six nearby settlements, it said.