Article author:
Reuters
Tom Balm Force and Max Hander
KYIV — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky "breaks" his army's willingness to pursue almost five in Moscow on Monday. He said he was discouraged from his efforts. War of the Moon while Russia's Vladimir Putin welcomes the victory of his army in the tough battle of Luhansk.
Russia occupied the city of Lysychans'k in eastern Ukraine on Sunday, ending one of Europe's biggest battles for generations and demanding Ukraine to make concessions to separatists. Completed the conquest of one of the regions, Luhansk Oblast. In the Donbus area.
As the war entered the next stage, Ukrainian troops took a new defense line in the eastern part of the country.
"The battlefield hasn't changed much in the last 24 hours," Zelenskiy said in a nightly video message. "Ukrainian troops respond, push back and destroy the aggressive potential of the occupiers every day. They need to be destroyed. It's a difficult task. It takes time and superhuman effort. But , There is no other choice. "
Earlier that day, Putin congratulated the Russian army with a" victory in the direction of Luhansk ". Participants in the fighting should "absolutely rest and regain military readiness," but troops in other regions will continue to fight, the Russian president said in a short video conference with the Defense Minister.
The Battle of Luhansk is the closest to achieving one of its stated objectives since Moscow was defeated in March in an attempt to occupy Kyiv. Since occupying Mariupol's shipping in late May, it has won Russia's biggest victory.
Claimed to have caused thousands of deaths and injuries on both sides, but inflicted far greater losses on the other side along the loop of the Siverskyi Donets River in Luhansk and Donetsk. did.
Relentless Russian bombardment struck Lysychans'k in the wasteland, neighboring Sieviero Donetsk and the surrounding towns. Many had heavy industry plants that defenders used as fortified bunkers. Russia repeatedly failed to surround the Ukrainians and eventually chose to blow them up with cannons.
Military experts say the strategic value of the abandoned city itself is limited.
"I think it's a tactical victory for Russia, but it costs a lot," said Neil Melvin, a RUSI think tank in London. He compared the battle to the huge battle for the small territory that characterizes World War I.
"It took 60 days to make very slow progress," he said. "I think the Russians may declare some kind of victory, but the important war battles haven't come yet."
Moscow, withdrawal of Ukraine gives momentum to Russian troops Hope, Ukraine will push further west into the neighboring province of Donetsk, which still holds the cities of Slovyansk, Kramatorsk and Bakumut.
"ITHURT SALOT"
Ukraine may have withdrawn from Luhansk a few weeks ago, but chose to continue fighting to exhaust the invading forces. .. It hopes that fierce fighting will deplete the Russians too much to benefit elsewhere.
Ukraine's Governor of Luhansk Oblast, Serhiy Gaidai, admitted that his entire state was virtually in the hands of Russia, but told Reuters: I'm not losing the war.
Guydai said the Ukrainian troops withdrawn from Lysychans'k are now maintaining the border between Bakmut and Slovyansk and are preparing to fend off further Russian progress.
Mayor Slovyansk said the heavy bombardment on Sunday killed at least six people, including a 10-year-old girl.
Russian Tas news agency said military officials in the Donetsk People's Republic said three civilians were killed and 27 were injured in the bombardment by Ukrainian troops. rice field.
Reuters could not verify your battlefield account.
US-based Foreign Policy Institute Rob Li said the new Ukrainian line of defense should be easier to defend than the abandoned Luhansk Oblast pocket.
"That's what Putin can show as a sign of success," he said. "But overall, this does not mean that Ukraine must make concessions or concessions immediately."
Russia's "special military operations" in Ukraine demilitarize its southern neighbors , States that it aims to protect the Russian language from what it calls a nationalist.
Ukraine and its western allies say this is an unfounded excuse for a violent attack aimed at occupying territory.
Zelenskiy said that rebuilding Ukraine's destroyed infrastructure would require "huge" funding.
At a meeting in Lugano, Switzerland, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said costs could reach $ 750 billion and rich Russians need to help pay the bill. Stated.
Counterattack
RUSI expert Melvin said Ukraine's decisive battle could take place in the south, not in the east, where Russia is launching its main attacks. Said it was expensive. Where Ukraine launched a counterattack to recapture its territory.
"This is where the Ukrainians are making progress around Kherson. From there the counterattack has begun, and the momentum against Ukraine to launch a large-scale counterattack to push the Russians back. I think you're most likely to see it sway, "he said.
Ukraine's expectations for a sustained counterattack have been added from the west, including rockets that can neutralize Russia's huge firepower advantage by attacking deep in the front lines. It depends in part on receiving the weapons of.
Last week, Ukraine won its own big victory and expelled Russian troops from Snake Island. This was a desolate and strategic outcrop of the Black Sea that Moscow captured on the first day of the war, but could no longer defend against Ukrainian strikes.
Sweden's Prime Minister Magdalena Anderson said the best way to end the war is to increase support for Ukraine and increase pressure on Russia. Anderson said at a press conference with Zelensky earlier Monday that he was "ready to accept further sanctions" against Russia, adding that Moscow should not be allowed to benefit from the aggression.
Sweden, along with its neighboring country Finland, recently applied for NATO membership. Anderson said it could take a year for her country to become a full member of the alliance.
(Report by Reuters bureaux, Additional report by Oleksandr Kozhukhar, Written by Michael Perry, Peter Graff, Paul Simao, Edited by Simon Cameron-Moore, Alison Williams, David Gregorio)
