MOSCOW: Russia said on Sunday that its troops have captured two frontline villages in Ukraine: Andriivka in the eastern Luhansk region and Pishchane in the northeastern Kharkiv region.

The two villages are less than 20 kilometers apart, on a section of the front line where Moscow has made major advances in recent weeks.

Russian army units “liberated” the settlements of Andriivka and Pishchane and “also occupied more favorable lines and positions,” the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement.

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Andriivka, a village with fewer than 20 inhabitants, was one of the last settlements in the eastern Luhansk region still under Kiev control and was a key target for Moscow.

According to the Institute for the Study of War, the Kremlin also has Pishchane in its sights because its capture would give Russia access to the Oskil River, which is about 10 kilometers away.

Moscow claims it has captured a series of villages and settlements in recent weeks, many of which consist of no more than a few streets and a handful of abandoned buildings.

Neither side has managed to achieve a decisive breakthrough and both Moscow and Kiev say they are inflicting heavy losses on the other, nearly two and a half years after Russia launched its offensive.