INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
earlier claims from Kyiv's forces that they had retaken the settlements.The contradictory reports from Kyiv and Moscow come as analysts
have said that Ukraine has launched a long-awaited counteroffensive with Western weapons in an aim to claw back territory occupied by
Russian troops had fought off Ukrainian attacks just west of Velyka Novosilka, around the nearby village of Levadne in the neighboring
southern region of Zaporizhzhia.Ukraine has over recent days claimed to have advanced deeper into Russian-controlled territory around Velyka
Novosilka, announcing the capture of three villages over the weekend.After months of building expectations, Ukrainian President Volodymyr
Zelensky confirmed on Saturday that a counteroffensive against Russian forces had begun.On Sunday, Kyiv claimed to have captured three
retaken another village in the same area, while Ukrainian forces said they had captured Novodarivka, a village in the southern region of
Zaporizhzhia near Levadne earlier this month.The various claims by Moscow and Kyiv could not be verified independently but analysts have
said that Ukraine has likely made recent advances near Velyka Novosilka."Ukrainian forces made visually verified advances in western Donetsk
Oblast and western Zaporizhia Oblast, which Russian sources confirmed but sought to downplay," the United States -based Institute for the
Study of War said in an analytical note Monday.
