Russian forces say they have captured the eastern Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk, a key logistics hub that has been under siege for almost two years .

The Kremlin announced the news in a Telegram post on Monday, citing Russian Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov. The post said the eastern Ukrainian city of Vovchansk in the Kharkiv region had also been captured by Russian forces.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Gerasimov reported news of the “liberation” to Russian President Vladimir Putin late on Sunday as the leader visited a front-line command centre, according to Russia’s TASS news agency.

Pokrovsk is a major transportation hub in the Donetsk region, one of the four regions of eastern Ukraine that Russia claims to have annexed.

The city, once home to 60,000 people, has been heavily b

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