INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Russia's Defense Ministry said Thursday its forces had captured a small village in eastern Ukraine, as both sides struggle to make
significant battlefield gains after two years of fighting."In the Donetsk direction, as a result of successful actions of Southern Group
verify the Defense Ministry's claims.The village of Vesele lies 20 kilometers (12 miles) northeast of Bakhmut, the industrial city that was
flattened by months of artillery shelling and urban combat earlier in the conflict.Vesele had a pre-conflict population of around 100.Moscow
control over the territory.Millions of Ukrainians fled the east and south of the country after Russia launched its full-scale military
offensive in February 2022.Neither side has made any significant territorial gains for more than a year as the conflict has ground to a
