“Ukrainian counterattacks and pushback by Russian forces on their supply lines have allowed Ukraine to reoccupy towns and defensive positions up to 35 kilometers east of kyiv,” the update read.
Volodymyr Borysenko, mayor of Borispol, an eastern suburb where kyiv’s main airport is located, said 20,000 civilians fled the area in response to an eviction call so Ukrainian troops could push back the Russians.
Ukrainian forces had recaptured a village from Russian troops the day before, between Borispol and Brovary, and would have continued to advance but had stopped so as not to endanger civilians, he said.
On the other main front on the outskirts of kyiv, northwest of the capital, Ukrainian forces have tried to encircle Russian troops in the adjacent suburbs of Irpin, Bucha and Hostomel, reduced to ruins by heavy fighting in recent weeks.
In Bucha, 25 kilometers northwest of kyiv, a small group of Ukrainian troops armed with anti-tank missiles were digging trenches. Andriy told Reuters that he had enlisted to defend the city as soon as the invasion began.
“I told my wife to grab the kids and hide in the basement, and I went to the recruiting station and enlisted in my unit right away,” he said. “My wife and children were under occupation for two weeks, but then they managed to escape through a humanitarian corridor.”