 "This handout photograph taken and released by the State Emergency Service of Ukraine on June 21, 2025, shows firefighters extinguishing a fire following a Russian night strike in the Kremenchuk district of the Poltava region. Image- AFP")
Russian forces have taken control of the village of Zaporizhzhya in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, the country’s Defence Ministry announced on Saturday, according to Russian state news agency TASS.
The small settlement, home to around 200 people before the war lies near the strategically important city of Pokrovsk, a key transport hub that has seen heavy fighting in recent months. Its capture could provide Russian troops with a tactical advantage as they push further in their eastern offensive.
The village should not be confused with the larger city of Zaporizhzhia, a major industrial centre about 160 kilometres (90 miles) to the southeast.
Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin delivered some of his most hardline remarks on Ukraine during a Q&A session at an investment forum in St. Petersburg. “All of Ukraine is ours,” Putin said, reiterating his belief that Russians and Ukrainians are “one nation.” The statement, reported by The Independent, is among the most uncompromising Putin has made since Donald Trump assumed office in the US.
Putin also raised alarm over the potential use of nuclear weapons, warning of “catastrophic” consequences should Ukraine deploy a so-called “dirty bomb,” a claim Kyiv has repeatedly denied.
Efforts within the US to pressure Moscow into peace negotiations appear to have lost momentum. A working group set up to explore options for bringing Russia to the negotiating table has reportedly been disbanded. Officials cited a lack of interest from Donald Trump, suggesting a shift in Washington’s posture towards the conflict.
With the latest territorial gains and heightened rhetoric, Russia’s war in Ukraine appears set to enter an even more unpredictable phase.
Meanwhile, Kyiv received the bodies of 20 Russian soldiers instead of Ukrainian ones during exchanges of war dead with Moscow, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Saturday.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsHe accused Russia of “not checking” who they were sending, and suggested Moscow might be doing it on purpose to conflate the number of Ukrainian bodies they had.
The repatriation of fallen soldiers and the exchange of prisoners of war has been one of the few areas of cooperation between the warring sides since Moscow invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
Moscow and Kyiv agreed earlier this month during talks in Istanbul to exchange the bodies of 6,000 soldiers each.
“It has already been confirmed during repatriations that the bodies of 20 people handed over to us as our deceased soldiers are Russian,” Zelensky said in remarks released on Saturday.
“Sometimes these bodies even have Russian passports,” he added.
An “Israeli mercenary” fighting for Moscow was also among those sent, he said.
Tens of thousands of soldiers have been killed on both sides since the war began. Neither country regularly releases information on military casualties.
Zelensky said there were currently “695,000 Russian troops” on Ukrainian territory.
With inputs from agencies