Russia says destroyed American Abrams tank in Ukraine

MOSCOW (AFP): Russia’s defence ministry said Tuesday it had destroyed an American Abrams battle tank, the first such claim since Washington delivered the heavy vehicles to Kyiv.

“The enemy lost… two tanks, including a US-made Abrams,” the defence ministry said, after reports from Russian military bloggers showed unverified images purporting to show the vehicles on fire.

Russia says captured Ukrainian village near Avdiivka

Russian forces on Tuesday said they had captured another Ukrainian village as they seek to press their advantage following the capture of the town of Avdiivka this month.

The defence ministry also said Russian forces had destroyed an American Abrams battle tank, the first such claim since Washington delivered the vehicles to Kyiv.

In its daily update, the ministry said the village of Sieverne had been “liberated”.

The ministry statement used a Russian name for the captured village — “Severnoye”.

Russian forces “have occupied more favourable lines and positions,” it added.

AFP could not independently verify the Russian claim and there was no immediate response from the Ukrainian army.

The Ukrainian army said on Monday it had withdrawn from the nearby village of Lastochkyne “to organise defences” further back after Russia claimed its capture.

The battle for Avdiivka was one of the bloodiest of the two-year war, drawing comparisons with Russia’s assault on Bakhmut, which it captured last May.

Facing manpower and ammunition shortages, Ukraine was forced to withdraw from the industrial hub in the eastern Donetsk region, handing Moscow its first major territorial gain since Bakhmut.

In its statement on Tuesday, the Russian defence ministry also said it had destroyed “two tanks, including a US-made Abrams”.

Reports from Russian military bloggers showed unverified images purporting to show the vehicles on fire.

Ukraine said the US tanks arrived in September.

Asked on Monday about reports that an Abrams tank had been destroyed, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “Our fighters have been saying from the beginning that these tanks will burn like the others.”