Ukrainian troops stand at the Ukraine-Russia border in what was said to be the Kharkiv region, Ukraine in this screen grab obtained from a video released on May 15, 2022. Ukrainian Ministry of Defence/Handout via REUTERS
KYIV 鈥� Ukraine said on Monday troops defending the country鈥檚 second-largest city, Kharkiv, had repelled Russian forces and advanced as far as the border with Russia.
Reuters could not immediately verify Ukraine鈥檚 battlefield account and it was not clear how many troops had reached the Russian border and where.
If confirmed, it would suggest a Ukrainian counter-offensive is having increasing success in pushing back Russian forces in the northeast after Western military agencies said Moscow鈥檚 offensive in the Donbas region had stalled.
Ukraine鈥檚 defence ministry said in a Facebook post that the 227th Battalion of the 127th Brigade of Ukraine鈥檚 armed forces had reached the border with Russia, adding: 鈥淭ogether to victory!鈥�
Kharkiv region governor Oleh Sinegubov wrote on the Telegram messaging app that troops of the 227th Battalion had restored a sign on the state border.
鈥淲e thank everyone who, risking their lives, liberates Ukraine from Russian invaders,鈥� Sinegubov said.
Ukraine has scored a series of successes since Russia invaded on Feb. 24, forcing Russia鈥檚 commanders to abandon an advance on the capital Kyiv before making rapid gains around Kharkiv.
Moscow calls its invasion of Ukraine a 鈥渟pecial military operation鈥� to rid the country of fascists, an assertion Kyiv and its Western allies say is a baseless pretext for an unprovoked war.
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