Ukrainian troops are reaching the Russian border in a counterattack near Kharkiv, the regional governor claims

Ukrainian forces have launched a successful counterattack near the northeastern city of Kharkiv, according to the regional governor, with some of their troops reaching the Russian border.

Leh Sinegubov said on Telegram that soldiers from the 227th Battalion of the 127th Brigade rebuilt a post there.

“We thank all those who risked their lives to liberate Ukraine from Russian invaders,” he added.

The Defense Ministry of Ukraine also claimed that members of the battalion went to the border and published a photo of a dozen soldiers standing next to a blue and yellow pole.

Neither Mr. Sinegubov nor Kyiv have indicated how many Ukrainian troops have arrived in the border area.

The Independent Could not immediately verify claims about the counterattack, carried out by soldiers defending Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city about 30 miles from Russia.

The reported development comes after Western sources indicated that Russian attacks were stalling in eastern Ukraine, where most of the fighting is taking place.

“The Brutal Invasion [by] Russia is losing momentum,” NATO Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoana said on Sunday, before adding his belief that Ukraine could win the war.

The UK MoD shared this view, saying the Kremlin’s campaign in the eastern Donbass region was “significantly behind schedule”.

“Russian forces are increasingly being constrained by degraded capabilities, persistently low morale and reduced combat effectiveness,” she added.

Meanwhile, the Institute for the Study of War, an American think tank, said Russia has likely dropped its plan to encircle Ukrainian units between Donetsk and Izyum. The Kremlin will instead focus its efforts on the Luhansk region.

To further thwart the Russian invasion, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba called on the EU to impose an oil embargo on Russia, a move the bloc’s diplomats say is being obstructed by Hungary.

Mr Kuleba also urged Western nations to supply more arms to Ukraine and to consider their application to join the EU under specific criteria.

“We believe that Ukraine deserves an individual and merit-based assessment,” he said during a visit to Brussels on Monday.