General Staff responds to Putin and Gerasimov on the "seizure" of Kupiansk and Yampil

General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine objected statements by the Russian leadership about the alleged seizure ofKupiansk and Yampil in Kharkiv and Donetsk regions.

In particular, on the evening of November 20, the head of the Russian General Staff, Valery Gerasimov, announced the alleged complete capture of these settlements in his report to the dictator Vladimir Putin.

In response, the Ukrainian command said thatKupiansk was under the control of the Defense Forces: "Counter-sabotage measures and special actions to search for and destroy enemy subversive groups that have infiltrated the city and its outskirts are underway."

According to the General Staff, the situation in Yampil is similar: search and strike operations by our troops continue in the area of the village.

The Ukrainian military also denied claims that it had captured 80% of the city of Vovchansk in Kharkiv region and 70% of Pokrovsk in Donetsk region.

"Search and assault operations and elimination of the enemy in the city's buildings are underway in Pokrovsk. Additional logistical routes to Pokrovsk and Myrnohrad are being organized to ensure uninterrupted supply of our units with everything they need. The occupants' assault groups and their accumulation sites are being identified and destroyed," the statement reads.

The General Staff reminded that Russian propaganda had already "carted" journalists to Kupiansk and Pokrovsk.

"Another information lie by the Russian General Staff is aimed only at hiding the critical losses of the Russian army, which is being driven into constant "meat" assaults. The only bloody "achievements" of the Russian leadership are the murders of women and children, as it was during the attack on a residential building in Ternopil", the command noted.

They also reminded that since the beginning of 2025, the losses of the Russian Federation have exceeded 371,000 people.

According to the Ukrainian analytical project Deepstate, the occupiers have not completely captured Kupiansk and do not control most of Vovchansk and Pokrovsk, and Yampil is entirely in the "gray zone."

• Ukrainian Navy reports that Russian troops could have fired on Myrnohrad near Pokrovsk a 3000-kilogram guided bomb.