Russia claimed Sunday that its forces are for the first time pushing into the central Ukrainian region of Dnipropetrovsk, an area it has been trying to reach for months, in a move that could create new problems for Kyiv’s much-stretched forces.

Russia and Ukraine held a second round of peace talks where they agreed to exchange more prisoners and to return the bodies of 12,000 dead soldiers.

The Russian Ministry of Defense said soldiers have advanced into the Dnipropetrovsk region in south-central Ukraine.