Russia has claimed the capture of a key railway junction as its forces fight to seize all of eastern Ukraine’s contested Donbas region.

A Russian Defense ministry spokesman reported Saturday said the city of Lyman had been “completely liberated” by a joint force of Russian soldiers and Moscow-backed separatists.

The city is the second small municipality to fall to Russian forces this week.

Controlling Lyman would give the Russian military a foothold for advancing on larger Ukrainian-held cities in the Donbas.

The Kremlin said Russian President Vladimir Putin held a telephone call with the leaders of France and Germany on Saturday, and warned against continued transfers of Western weapons to Ukraine.