Ukrainian army claims to have recaptured positions from Russian invaders

Ukrainian armed forces early on Monday claimed to have recaptured more than 20 settlements in the regions of Donetsk and Kharkiv over the past 24 hours following a major counter-offensive against units of the Russian army. Moscow has issued no response to the Ukrainian claims.

"In the past 24 hours, Ukrainian armed forces drove the enemy away from more than 20 settlements" and are regaining "full control over them", the Ukrainian army said in its daily briefing.

"In their retreat, Russian troops are hastily abandoning their positions and fleeing," the army statement added.

Over the weekend, Ukraine claimed sweeping successes against Russia in the south and the east, including the cities of Izyum, Kupiansk and Balakliya.

On Sunday night, regions in eastern Ukraine saw widespread electricity blackouts after strikes described by Kyiv foreign ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko as an "act of desperation following Russia's immense losses and retreat in eastern Ukraine".

There was "a total blackout in the Kharkiv and Donetsk regions, a partial one in the Zaporizhzhia, Dnipropetrovsk and Sumy regions", Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his daily address on Sunday.

Power was quickly restored in most places.
In the Kharkiv region 80 percent of the water and electricity supply had been restored on Monday morning, according to the Ukrainian president's office.

Ukraine's nuclear energy agency also said on Sunday that the final reactor at the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia plant, Europe's largest nuclear power station, was shut off as a safety measure.

Russia unable to position reinforcements

The success of Ukrainian forces in pushing Russian troops out of the Kharkiv region  will have "significant implications for Russia's overall operational design”, according to the UK Ministry of Defence, and for the morale of its soldiers on the ground.

"The majority of the force in Ukraine is highly likely being forced to prioritise emergency defensive actions," the London-based ministry said in a Twitter post on Monday morning.

"The already limited trust deployed troops have in Russia's senior military leadership is likely to deteriorate further."

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Moscow has probably ordered the withdrawal of its troops from the whole of the occupied Kharkiv region west of the Oskil river, according to the UK Ministry of Defence.

The ministry suggests Russia could be struggling to bring sufficient reinforcements across the Dnipro river to the front line on the west bank of the river near Kherson.

"An improvised floating bridge Russia started over two weeks ago remains incomplete," the MoD says. "Ukrainian long-range artillery is now hitting crossings of the Dnipro so frequently that Russia cannot carry out repairs to damaged road bridges."