Push and Pull: Russia Announces Control of the Ukrainian City of Kupiansk

Russia announced on Tuesday that it had taken control of the strategic city of Kupiansk in northeastern Ukraine, after Kyiv recently confirmed the recapture of several neighborhoods in the city.

Russian state news agency TASS reported statements from the spokesperson for the Russian “Zapad” military group deployed in the area, who said, “The city of Kupiansk is under the control of the Russian 5th Army.”

The Russian statement also mentioned that “Ukrainian armed forces attempt to infiltrate Kupiansk daily with small groups through the cemetery, suffering heavy losses.”

Russia had previously announced the capture of Kupiansk in November, before Ukraine confirmed it had retaken parts of the city.

Earlier, Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov assured that Russian forces, in coordination with assault units, were advancing confidently toward Kupiansk, drawing closer to a complete victory.

Yesterday, U.S. President Donald Trump stated that reaching an agreement on Ukraine was “closer than ever,” while European leaders proposed a “multinational force” to enforce a potential peace agreement.

This comes as key powers held a meeting in Berlin with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, to push forward efforts to end the war, even though Russia has yet to respond to the latest proposals.

Trump stated from the Oval Office, “We are closer than ever” to reaching an agreement that would end the war with Russia, adding that he had held “very long and very good talks” with Zelensky and others, including leaders from the UK, France, Germany, and NATO.

On Monday, the major European powers and the European Union issued a joint statement proposing the deployment of a “multinational force” in Ukraine as part of “strong security guarantees” backed by the U.S., aimed at preventing Russia from violating a ceasefire agreement in the war that began in 2022.

On Monday, Zelensky met for the second consecutive day with U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and U.S. President Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, in talks aimed at reaching an agreement to end the war, based on a proposal made by Trump.

He praised the “real progress” made in the talks regarding security guarantees but pointed out the continuing divergence between the two countries on the issue of Kyiv possibly conceding land to Moscow.