Ukraine says recaptured village on southern front

KYIV, Ukraine: Ukraine announced on Monday it had recaptured a village on the southern frontline, where its forces are hoping for a breakthrough in their grinding offensive against entrenched Russian positions.

Kyiv launched its pushback in June after stockpiling Western-supplied weapons, building up assault battalions and attacking Russian positions. But officials in Kyiv have acknowledged that progress has been slow and Moscow says Ukrainian forces are running out of resources.

“Robotyne has been liberated. Our forces are advancing southeast of Robotyne and south of Mala Tokmachka,” Deputy Defence Minister Ganna Malyar said on television. Both settlements are in the southern region of Zaporizhzhia, one of four that the Kremlin claimed to have annexed last year despite not having military control over any of them. Ukraine´s limited advances on the southern front have spurred a political debate in Western capitals over political and military support for Kyiv.