General Staff: Russian forces fail to make advances in Donetsk Oblast.
Russian forces have unsuccessfully attempted to advance near the Donetsk Oblast village of Blahodatne, which was recently liberated by Ukrainian forces, the General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces reported[1] on June 12. There are several settlements named Blahodatne in Donetsk Oblast, but reports suggest that it was the village located near the town of Velyka Novosilka, west of Vuhledar, that was liberated[2] on June 11. According to the General Staff, Russian forces also carried out 17 air strikes and shelled various settlements, including in Sumy and Kharkiv oblasts, 22 times over the past day.
However, Ukrainian forces struck three Russian command posts, two air defense systems, a military base, and three artillery units located in firing positions. There were 23 clashes between Ukrainian and Russian forces along the front line over the past day. Ukrainian forces also downed a Russian Ka-52 helicopter[3] and an Orlan-10 drone, the General Staff added.
President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed[4] during a press conference in Kyiv on June 10 that Ukraine's long-anticipated counteroffensive was already underway.
Ukraine war latest: Ukraine liberates at least 3 settlements in Donetsk Oblast Key developments on June 11: * Ukraine liberates 3 villages, makes progress in Donetsk Oblast * Russian troops attack evacuation boat, killing 3, injuring 23 in Kherson Oblast * Water level drops in Kherson Oblast after Kakhovka Dam disaster * Russian forces blow smaller dam in Donetsk Oblast...
[5] 
Kate Tsurkan
News editor
Kate Tsurkan is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. She is a writer, editor, and translator.
Her work has been published in The New Yorker, Vanity Fair, Harpers, The Washington Post, and elsewhere.
She is the co-founder of Apofenie Magazine.
Originally from the U.S., she resides in Chernivtsi, a city in the west of Ukraine.
References
- ^ reported (www.facebook.com)
- ^ liberated (kyivindependent.com)
- ^ Ka-52 helicopter (kyivindependent.com)
- ^ confirmed (kyivindependent.com)
- ^ Ukraine war latest: Ukraine liberates at least 3 settlements in Donetsk OblastKey developments on June 11: * Ukraine liberates 3 villages, makes progress in Donetsk Oblast * Russian troops attack evacuation boat, killing 3, injuring 23 in Kherson Oblast * Water level drops in Kherson Oblast after Kakhovka Dam disaster * Russian forces blow smaller dam in Donetsk Oblast... (kyivindependent.com)