AFP, Moscow

Russia yesterday said its forces had captured a village in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, as Moscow continues to advance slowly across the battlefield.

The defence ministry said its troops “liberated the village of Sokil”, around 30 kilometres northwest of Donetsk city, the capital of the region by the same name that Moscow claimed to have annexed in 2022.

Kyiv says the fiercest fighting across the entire front line is taking place in the Donetsk region, where Russian troops are trying to eject Ukraine’s forces.

Elsewhere, Kyiv, EU officials, the United States and NATO hit out at Hungarian leader Viktor Orban, Russia’s closest EU ally, on Friday after Russian President Vladimir Putin hosted him in Moscow for talks on the Ukraine conflict.

Speaking to Orban, Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday repeated his demand for Ukraine to totally withdraw from the region, along with three others in the south and east of the country, if it wants peace.

Orban has not received any mandate from the EU Council to visit Moscow, officials have said.