Ukraine updates: Kyiv reports successes in counteroffensive

Ukrainian troops continued offensive operations near Bakhmut in the eastern Donetsk region and in the southern Zaporizhzhia region and made further gains on both sectors of the front, US-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported on Friday.

"Ukraine is making tactical gains and successfully attriting defending Russian forces, and ISW continues to assess its counteroffensive may achieve operational successes in 2023," the analysts said, adding that subsequent series of Russian defensive positions still pose serious challenges.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in his nightly address on Thursday singled out military units in the east and south for their actions against Russian troops and other officials reported some breakthroughs in a counteroffensive to reclaim Russian-occupied territory.

The general staff of Ukraine's armed forces also described a "partial success" near the eastern city of Bakhmut, long a focal point of fighting. And it said Ukrainian troops were making gradual progress in their southward advance to the Sea of Azov.

Ukraine began its counteroffensive in June and has focused on retaking Bakhmut, seized by Russian troops in May, and capturing clusters of villages in the south. They face Russian troops that are well-dug in and have benefited from extensive mine-laying operations.