Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that his country had recovered 6,000 square kilometers of its territory from Russian forces, and an American source confirmed the decline in the morale of Russian soldiers, at a time when Russia announced the killing of 250 Ukrainian soldiers in Kharkiv.
In a video recording posted on social media, Zelensky said that the Ukrainian army had regained control of about 6,000 square kilometers of land from Russian forces, since it launched its counterattack early this month, adding, "We are continuing to advance."
The Ukrainian president praised the "courage" of 3 military units that participated in this operation, which led to the largest field gains for Ukraine since the withdrawal of Russian forces from the outskirts of Kyiv at the end of last March.
Reuters quoted a senior US military official as saying that Russian forces had crossed the border back to Russia, and that Moscow had lost many of its gains in Kharkiv.
He added that Russia's decision to abandon military equipment during the withdrawal indicates a chaos in command and control, and that the low morale of Russian soldiers and logistical problems contributed to the recent Russian retreat.
The Ukrainian army had announced the launch of a counterattack in the south of the country, and during the past week it made rapid progress in the northeastern Kharkiv region, as well as achievements in the Russian-occupied Kherson region (south), bordering the Crimea, and also in areas controlled by pro-Russian separatists in east of the country.
dead and wounded
On the other hand, a civilian was killed and 4 others were wounded in a Russian bombing of the city of Kharkiv, while the military administration of the Kharkiv Province asked citizens to stay in shelters for fear of renewed bombing.
The local council of the city of Izyum announced that the Ukrainian forces had taken control of the city and were conducting military operations in its entire area.
In turn, the governor of Ukraine's Lugansk province, Sergey Gaidai, said that the operations of Ukrainian forces will expand to include other regions, including the Crimea.
During an interview with Al Jazeera, Gayday said that the results achieved by the Ukrainian forces were due to their use of modern military methods "that the Russian forces are not accustomed to," and stressed the importance of the weapons provided by Western countries in the ongoing battles.
Russian novel
On the other hand, RIA Novosti news agency quoted the head of the pro-Russian Kharkiv region, Vitaly Ganchev, as saying that the number of Ukrainian militants who were heading towards Kharkiv was about 8 times greater, so the forces were withdrawn to maintain personnel.
And the Russian Defense Ministry announced the killing of about 250 Ukrainian soldiers during the raid of its air forces on Ukrainian forces in the cities of Kobyansk and Izyum in Kharkiv Province.
The Russian Defense Ministry broadcast video clips, which it said were of military operations in which the Marine Corps of the Pacific Fleet participated.
The ministry added that the strikes targeted the positions of the Ukrainian army, without specifying their location.
Meanwhile, the Russian presidency said that there is no talk now of withdrawing troops from the nuclear power plant in Zaporozhye.
The Kremlin statement added that the operation in Ukraine will continue until it achieves its goals, and that there are no indications or suitable grounds for holding peace talks with the Ukrainian side.
In the same regard, the Secretary of the Russian Security Council said that the events in Ukraine show that Washington and its followers are trying to prolong the conflict by increasing weapons.
Vyacheslav Gladkov, governor of the Belgorod region in southwestern Russia, announced that a Ukrainian civilian had been killed and four people had been slightly wounded as a result of Ukrainian shelling targeting a border post.