Russia claims seize of Stepove in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Ukraine denies

The Russian Protection Ministry claimed Russian forces captured the Ukrainian village of Stepove in Zaporizhzhia Oblast on March 17.

Ukraine's Southern Protection Forces spokesperson Vladyslav Voloshyn denied the assertion.

Stepove, with a pre-war inhabitants of 118 individuals, is situated 5 kilometers (3 miles) from the villages of Pyatykhatky and Mali Shcherbaky in Zaporizhzhia Oblast. All three settlements had been underneath Russian occupation in 2022 and 2023.

The Russian Protection Ministry claimed that its army had taken management of Stepove. Nonetheless, Voloshyn advised the Kyiv Impartial that Ukrainian forces didn’t lose floor within the Zaporizhzhia sector of the entrance line.

"It is a technique of knowledge warfare — the enemy claims that it’s there earlier than it has entered. I don’t verify the knowledge that Russia entered the settlements of Stepove, Mali Shcherbaky, or Shcherbaky and took them underneath management," Voloshyn stated.

"Fierce preventing continues on this space. The enemy is making an attempt to alter the configuration of the fight line in its favor. In whole, six fight engagements had been registered within the Orikhiv sector during the last day. The day earlier than yesterday, there have been 19," Voloshyn added.

In response to Voloshyn, since March, Russian forces have intensified their assaults in Zaporizhzhia Oblast. Because the starting of spring, there have been over 130 clashes within the Orikhiv sector alone.

The Ukrainian army warned in fall 2024 that Russian forces had been ammassing in Zaporizhzhia Oblast in preparation for a southern offensive. Heavy fortifications had been constructed across the regional capital of Zaporizhzhia forward of the potential invasion.

The world close to Stepove was the primary axis of Ukraine's southern counteroffensive in 2023, which led to the liberation of the settlement of Robotyne however achieved no main breakthrough.

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