It's unclear if the alleged attack was part of Ukraine's long-awaited counteroffensive. Meanwhile, a pro-Ukraine group said it would transfer captured Russian soldiers from Belgorod to Kyiv. DW has the latest.
Ednews reports that Russia's Defense Ministry said on Monday that its forces thwarted a major Ukrainian offensive in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk.
The ministry said Kyiv had used six mechanized and two tank battalions in the offensive on Sunday. It added that Russian forces killed 250 Ukrainian troops and destroyed dozens of tanks and vehicles.
"The enemy's goal was to break through our defenses in the most vulnerable, in its opinion, sector of the front," said the ministry's spokesman, Igor Konashenkov. "The enemy did not achieve its tasks. It had no success."
Moscow's claims could not be independently verified, and it was unclear whether the alleged attack was part of Ukraine's long-awaited counteroffensive to recapture territories taken by Russia.
Meanwhile, Ukraine's ground forces' commander said Ukrainian forces continued "moving forward" near Bakhmut.
Oleksandr Syrskyi said on Telegram that forces managed to destroy a Russian position near the city.
Ukrainian officials have spoken of a planned counteroffensive for months, but they have not elaborated the scale of such an attack — whether it would be a fully-fledged assault across the entire 1,100-kilometer (684-mile) front line, or smaller ones to weaken Russia's forces and facilities.