Captain Shershen names places of Ukrainian army's attacks in south

Captain Valeriy Shershen, spokesman for the Joint Press Center of the Tavria Defense Forces, said this on Espreso TV. 

“Heavy fighting continues in the Avdiivka and Marinka sectors as our troops continue to hold back the Russian offensive in the vicinity of Severne, Avdiivka, Marinka and Pobieda. No losses of our positions have been allowed. Offensive actions continue at the Melitopol and Berdiansk directions - the Defense Forces are attacking in the Novodanylivka-Robotyne and Mala Tovkmachka-Novofedorivka areas,” he said.

According to him, the nature of local offensives has not changed.

“We have partial success, we are consolidating our positions, inflicting artillery fire, and carrying out counter-battery measures. The enemy forces have focused their main efforts on defense and preventing the advance of our troops in the Melitopol sector. They are using reserves and trying to regain lost positions,” added the captain.

The spokesperson emphasized that administrations haven't yet entered the liberated villages, so it is too early to say.

“The Russian troops are not giving up trying to regain the lost settlements - of course, they will not succeed. For us, these are already very well-protected footholds for further advancement and offensive actions. The advance is hampered by extensive mining of the occupied territories in the enemy's defense lines. There are positive aspects, but it is too early to talk about them. We are all looking forward to the further liberation of the settlements. The prerequisites for this are being created, so let's not rush and wishful thinking. In the Vuhledar sector, we are creating conditions to continue effective offensive actions. This is a very important foothold for us and we are actively working here as well,” summarized Shershen.

• On the morning of June 12, Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar reported that the national flag was flying again over Storozhove in the Donetsk region. She said that over the past week, the Ukrainian Armed Forces had liberated 7 settlements and advanced 6.5 kilometers.

• On June 19, Ukraine's Defense Ministry officially confirmed the liberation of the village of Piatykhatky in the Zaporizhzhia region. Units in the Tavria sector advanced up to 7 km.

• As of the morning of June 23, Ukrainian soldiers stopped the Russian offensive in the Kupiansk and Lyman directions, and continued to conduct offensive operations in the Melitopol and Berdiansk sectors, with partial success.