Ukraine declares first gain of counteroffensive against Russia, reclaiming village

Ukraine announced on Sunday that its forces have reclaimed control of a village in the largely Russian-occupied regions of the Donetsk, marking the first gain of the Ukrainian counter-offensive.

Ukraine’s ground forces announced that soldiers of the 68th separate hunting brigade “liberated the settlement of Blagodatne,” state news agency Ukrinform reported.

The Ukrainian forces also said they had captured a number of Russian soldiers and that the information they obtained from them will help in the operations to reclaim Ukrainian land from Russian occupation.

Blagodatne represents the first military gain for Ukraine as part of its long-awaited counter-offensive to reclaim Russian-occupied territories armed with the latest shipments of Western weapon systems.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy acknowledged on Saturday that the Ukrainian army was conducting “counter-offensive and defensive” operations but refused to elaborate further.