Kyiv Rejects Moscow's Claims That It Captured Kostiantynivka

Ukraine continues to control the strategically important city of Kostiantynivka in the east of the country. Both President Volodymyr Zelensky and the Ukrainian General Staff have rejected Russian claims that its troops had captured the city.

On Friday, the Russian military informed President Vladimir Putin that it had taken control of Kostiantynivka, which has long been one of the main targets of its advance in the Donetsk region.

"Of course, that is not true. It is just another Russian lie, an attempt to generate some kind of a news story", Zelensky wrote on the social media platform X. He added that if the city were truly under Russian control, Putin would, in his view, have no problem meeting with him there to seek a diplomatic solution to the war.

The General Staff also said that units of the 19th Army Corps of the Eastern Grouping were continuing defensive operations in the city and along its access routes.

Kostiantynivka is the southernmost of four key cities forming Ukraine's defensive line in the heavily industrialized Donetsk region. Analysts point out that capturing the city would open the way for Russian forces to advance further along this line.

(Reuters, bak)