Kreminna is first city captured in Donbas
A MAJOR town in the besieged region of the Donbas has fallen to Russian forces after a long and valiant fightback.
Kreminna in Luhansk, which has a population of around 18,000, is now under full Kremlin control, according to intelligence reports received by the UK’s Ministry of Defence.
No further details were given but the news was seen as significant while heavy shelling continued along a 300-mile front.
The MoD also warned intense fighting was reported in the south of Izium city as Russian forces attempt to advance towards Sloviansk and Kramatorsk.
The update additionally said Moscow’s troops were most likely attempting to encircle heavily fortified Ukrainian positions across the east of the country.
Despite the reported capture of Kreminna, UK Armed Forces Minister James Heappey said there was still a possibility that Ukraine could win the Battle of the Donbas.
He insisted a Vladimir Putin victory was not inevitable.
Mr Heappey added: “We’ll see a conflict between two forces that are much more evenly balanced, where the Ukrainians have the advantage of defensive positions.
“That’s going to make it an extraordinarily difficult nut for the Russians to crack.And with the support Ukrainians are getting from around the world, there is every chance the Ukrainians can see them off.”
Defence Secretary BenWallace said on Monday that 15,000 Russian troops have died to date.
The Kremlin claimed it had destroyed six substations powering Ukrainian railways used to transport weapons in that day’s attacks in central and western Ukraine.At least five people died.
Meanwhile, Moldova held an urgent security meeting and the Russians voiced concerns after two blasts damaged Soviet-era radio masts.They lie in breakaway Transdniestria, an unrecognised Moscow-backed sliver of land bordering south-west Ukraine.