MOSCOW, August 23. /TASS/. Russian troops currently control around 50 populated localities in the Kharkov Region, Vitaly Ganchev, the head of the Kharkov Region's civil-military administration, has told TASS in an interview.

"Around 50 [settlements are under Russian control]. It’s approximate, however, because lots of localities are within the grey zone," he said.

"The town of Volchansk is Ukraine’s outpost in the area, where Ukrainian troops are constantly trying to attack our positions. Nevertheless, we are making progress. Our troops advance slowly but steadily there," the official added.

In his words, the liberated territories have a combined population of around 2,000 people in total.