The Ukrainian military has recaptured more ground in unlawfully annexed territories of Russia, advancing near the city of Kherson in the south and consolidating gains in the east.
The advance was confirmed by Russian-installed officials in Kherson, who also reported that Moscow’s forces were digging in.
Additionally, Ukrainian forces marched eastward toward the Russian-held city of Luhansk.
President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine stated, “There are new freed settlements in many locations.”
During his nightly speech, President Zelensky stated that “in many regions, violent warfare continues,” although he did not provide specifics. The progress of Ukraine’s counterattacks has been strictly guarded, and reporters have been kept away from the front lines for the most part.
In the south, however, Vladimir Saldo, the Russian-installed commander of the Kherson area, acknowledged that Ukrainian forces had broken through near Dudchany, a town located 30 kilometers (20 miles) south of the former front line. The Russians call the river Dnieper.
Mr. Saldo stated, “There are settlements occupied by the Ukrainian military.” According to certain Russian sources, the Ukrainians have now captured Dudchany.
Igor Konashenkov, a spokesman for the Russian Ministry of Defense, stated that “numerically superior” Ukrainian tanks had “carved a deep wedge” south of the settlement of Zolota Balka, which marked the former front line on the Dnieper. He stated that the Russians had murdered approximately 130 Ukrainian soldiers during the conflict.
Approximately 70 kilometers (44 miles) east of Kherson, two Ukrainian battalions attempted to reach the Kakhovka hydroelectric station, according to Mr. Saldo. The power plant is located in Nova Kakhovka, a port city.
Reuters reported that the Ukrainian assault is targeting the supply lines of up to 25,000 Russian troops on the west side of the Dnipro.
Meanwhile, in the east, Ukrainian forces have resumed an advance that has made advances into the region of Luhansk, which was annexed by Moscow last week and was formerly under almost entire Russian control.
On Saturday, Ukrainian forces regained the strategic hub city of Lyman in the east, close to the border of the Luhansk province. The Russian military had established a logistical station at Lyman.
A commander of Russia’s proxies in Luhansk stated that Ukrainian soldiers had advanced a few kilometers into the region before being eliminated.
Reports indicate that Ukrainian forces are advancing on the Russian-held towns of Kreminna and Svatove in Luhansk, with some pro-Kremlin blogs reporting that Russian forces had been ordered to retreat once more.
Kherson and Luhansk are among four districts that Russian President Vladimir Putin has declared to be part of Russia, following so-called referendums that Kyiv and its Western allies have branded as bogus. Russia does not have complete control over any of the four regions.
On Monday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was mocked online after admitting that Russia was still determining which territories it had “annexed,” implying that Moscow does not know where its self-declared borders are.
Mr. Peskov stated that the totality of the provinces of Luhansk and Donetsk were part of Russia, but that the Kremlin will “continue consultations with the populace regarding the borders of the districts of Kherson and Zaporizhia.”
Kyiv has threatened to reclaim all of the area annexed by Russia, including the 2014-seized Crimea.
According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, reservists drafted under Mr. Putin’s mobilization order last month are undergoing extensive combat training in the regions of Luhansk and Donetsk that are under Russian control. The Kremlin intends to call up approximately 300,000 reservists, however, President Putin did not set a maximum number.
