MELITOPOL, February 6. /TASS/. Russian forces have taken control of several Ukrainian strongholds north of the village of Priyutnoye in the Zaporozhye Region, Vladimir Rogov, leader of the We Are Together With Russia movement told TASS.

"Our units have advanced to the ponds northwest of the village of Priyutnoye and are consolidating their positions. <…> They have advance to a distance of from 200 to 500 meters, seized several enemy strongholds," he said.

According to Rogov, Priyutnoye has been in the grey zone for several months.

The Russian defense ministry said earlier that units of the Battlegroup East had improved their positions in the southern Donetsk area, repelling two Ukrainian attacks and hitting its manpower and weapons near the settlements of Staromayorskoye and Urozhainoye in the Donetsk People’s Republic and Priyutnoye in the Zaporozhye Region.