Russian troops have taken control of three villages in three different parts of Ukraine, the Defense Ministry said on Thursday.

It named the three settlements as Kamianske in the southeastern Zaporizhzhia region, Dehtiarne in the eastern Kharkiv region, and Popiv Yar in the eastern Donetsk region.

Moscow says it has incorpororated the Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk regions into Russia, a move that Kyiv and most Western countries reject as illegal.

Reuters could not independently verify the battlefield report.