Ukrainian soldiers have been able to make dramatic battlefield gains in the war-hit country’s east after Russian troops lost access to Starlink satellite internet, a US-based think tank said.
Ukrainian forces managed to recapture 201 sq km (78 sq miles) from Russia between Wednesday and Sunday, equivalent to the Russian gains for the entire month of December, data from the Institute for the Study of War showed.
This is the most land retaken by Kyiv’s forces in such a short period since a June 2023 counteroffensive, undoing weeks of Russian advances to the east of Zaporizhzhia city.
It comes ahead of the latest round of US-brokered peace talks between Russian and Ukrainian officials in Geneva later today.
The Kremlin has said the talks will focus on land, with Russia demanding that Ukraine cede the remaining 20 per cent of the eastern region of Donetsk that Moscow has failed to capture by force – something Kyiv refuses to do.
