Russia claims it took control of another village in Ukraine

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) – The Russian Defense Ministry on Wednesday claimed that its forces captured the settlement of Zapadne in Ukraine's Kharkiv region.

According to a ministry statement, that the village came under Russian control following an operation conducted by the Zapad (West) group of forces.

Additionally, the ministry stated that Russian air defense systems intercepted four drones launched from Ukraine to target civilian infrastructure in Energodar, the host town of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP), and not the nuclear facility itself.

Ukraine has not yet commented on these claims and independent verification of the reports remains challenging due to the ongoing conflict.