INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Russia's armed forces said Wednesday it captured two more villages in eastern Ukraine, the latest gains as Moscow's troops inch closer
to the strategically important city of Pokrovsk.The Russian military has claimed a series of territorial gains in the area since the start
of the year, pressing on even as Kyiv mounts its own cross-border offensive into the southwestern Kursk region of russia.Moscow said its
troops "liberated the settlements" of Hostre and Hryhorivka in the Donetsk region
town of Chasiv Yar.Meanwhile, Russian military correspondents reported that Ukraine faces a precarious situation in Vuhledar, a former
coal-mining town further south in the Donetsk region where heavy fighting is underway."It is highly likely that Russian forces now threaten
the town from three sides," the U.K.'s defense intelligence unit said Wednesday.However, the United States -based Institute for the Study
of War said Tuesday that the possible "capture of Vuhledar is unlikely to afford Russian forces any particular operational edge for further
offensive operations."Ukraine's General Staff did not respond to a request for comment about the situation in the town.
