Russian President Vladimir Putin has claimed without evidence that Russian forces have taken control of Pokrovsk and Vovchansk, both Ukrainian cities where intense fighting has been happening for weeks in the eastern part of the country. Putin made the claims the night before his meeting with U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff in Moscow to discuss a peace deal to end the war in Ukraine. The claims appear intended to influence that meeting, sending a message that Russia is advancing and has no need to compromise. But Ukraine’s military denied Putin’s claims, and soldiers on the frontline told ABC they were false. Putin and Russia’s military have repeatedly falsely claimed to have captured Ukrainian cities prematurely. Ukrainian forces “continue to hold back” Russia’s advances in Pokrovsk, the

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