Russia says its forces thwarted major Ukrainian offensive

Russian forces have thwarted a major Ukrainian offensive in the southern Ukrainian region of Donetsk, the Russian defence ministry said early on Monday.

In a statement, the ministry said Ukraine had launched the offensive on Sunday using six mechanised and two tank battalions.

Reuters was unable to immediately verify the Russian statement. (Writing by Lidia Kelly and David Ljunggren; editing by Guy Faulconbridge)