Ukraine's Defense Ministry says its troops have recaptured a settlement in the southern region of Zaporizhzhia in the latest progress in their counteroffensive against the Russian military.

Deputy defense minister Hanna Maliar said on Monday that Robotyne had been liberated and Ukrainian forces are moving southeast.

Robotyne leads to the road and rail hub of Tokmak. It's also about 70 kilometers from the key city of Melitopol near the Sea of Azov.

The liberation of Robotyne means that Ukrainian forces have breached the densest Russian defensive positions near the settlement that feature minefields and ditches.

But the Institute for the Study of War said on Sunday that Russia's next defensive positions appear to be "comprised of a relatively more contiguous array of anti-tank ditches and dragon's teeth anti-tank obstacles."

Meanwhile, Russian attacks led to civilian casualties.

The head of Ukraine's president office, Andriy Yermak, said on Monday that a missile attack left two people dead and five injured in the central region of Poltava.

The governor of the eastern region of Kharkiv said Russian shelling killed one person. The governor of the Kherson region in the south said one person died and two were injured in an attack on houses.

Also on Monday, Russia's defense ministry said drones were brought down in the western region of Bryansk that borders with Ukraine and near Moscow.

The Moscow mayor said the attack caused no damage, but Russian officials are on high alert after a series of drone attacks.