MOSCOW: Russia on Sunday said its forces had captured another village in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, the latest modest territorial gain for its advancing forces.

Russian troops had “liberated the village of Chigari” in the Donetsk region, the defence ministry said in a daily briefing posted on social media.

On Saturday, Moscow said its forces had taken control of another small village in the same region, where Kyiv says the fiercest fighting across the entire front line is taking place.

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Russia has made a string of battlefield advances since the start of the year, beginning with the capture of industrial hub Avdiivka in February.

But its progress has been grinding as the conflict looks locked in an attritional phase, with neither side able to punch a decisive breakthrough and both saying they are inflicting heavy casualties on the other.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday repeated his demand for Ukraine to totally withdraw from the region, along with three others in the south and east of the country, if it wants peace.