ISTANBUL 

Russia claimed on Tuesday that it took control of another settlement in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region.

The Defense Ministry in a statement said its forces captured the village of Balahan, about eight kilometers (five miles) east of the city of Pokrovsk, a key front in the over three-and-a-half-year Ukraine war.

Moscow has repeatedly asserted territorial gains in the past months, particularly in Donetsk, where fighting has intensified around Pokrovsk.

The ministry also claimed that Russian forces continued their advance into the eastern districts of the city of Myrnohrad, referred to in the statement by its old name of Dymytrov, located just two kilometers (1.2 miles) west of Balahan. Myrnohrad is about six kilometers (3.7 miles) east of Pokrovsk.

Ukraine’s General Staff claimed in an earlier statement that its forces stopped 65 Russian offensives near 16 settlements in the Pokrovsk front, including Balahan.

However, Ukrainian authorities did not immediately comment on Russia’s recent claims, and independent verification is difficult due to the ongoing war.