Russia says it won a big battle in Soledar, a small salt mining town in the eastern Donetsk region of Ukraine that has seen some of the most brutal fighting in the war.
Control of the town, which has been leveled from artillery strikes, will allow Russian forces to block Ukrainian supply routes, Russia's Defense Ministry said.
Soledar also gives the Russian army an advantage against the bigger prize of Bakhmut, which lies just a few miles away.
Dispute: Ukraine denies Russia has taken control of the town and says fighting is ongoing.
"The tough battle for Donetsk continues," Ukrainian President Voldymyr Zelensky said on Friday. "The battle for Bakhmut and Soledar, for Kreminna, for other towns and villages in the east of our state continues."
A symbolic victory: Taking Soledar itself, a small settlement, is more of a symbolic victory for Russia, which has struggled to make gains in the war and has lost territory to Ukrainian counter-offensives.
Still, it does give Russia a chance to assault the larger Bakhmut from a different direction after forces have repeatedly failed to capture the city.
Bakhmut in question: Bakhmut is an important transportation hub in Donetsk, but winning control of the city would not mark a huge gain for Russia.
Branislav Slantchev, a political science professor at the University of California, San Diego, said Russia must make gains elsewhere to hold Bakhmut.
"A lot of people are criticizing this pressure on Bakhmut and Soledar because even if they take them, if the Ukrainians achieve their goals in the north [Russia] can't defend them," he told The Hill this week.
Related: Why Russia is fighting so hard for Ukraine's Bakhmut
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