Today, Thursday, the Russian army continues to carry out the tasks of its special operation in Ukraine by targeting the sites of military infrastructure and Ukrainian forces throughout the country and moving forward with the liberation of the Donbass lands, while The West continues to provide Kyiv with aid and military equipment.
In the latest developments, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that Russian forces now control regarding a fifth of his country’s territory, including Crimea and lands under the control of pro-Moscow separatists since 2014.
“Today, regarding 20% of our land is under the control of the occupiers,” Zelensky told deputies in Luxembourg.
Russian forces are closing in on the strategic city of Severodonetsk in the Donbass, in a war that might “last for many months”, Washington has warned. The Russian army is focusing its efforts to control the Donbass region, which is witnessing a war of attrition following a conflict that has been going on for nearly 3 months. And it seems that the roller tactic adopted by Moscow to bite off parts of the Donbass gradually, is paying off.
Scenes from Ukraine
Scenes from Ukraine
Scenes from Ukraine
The British Ministry of Defense said that Russian forces control most of the Ukrainian city of Severodonetsk, but suffered losses. The ministry said on Twitter that the main road in Severodonetsk is likely still under the control of Ukrainian forces, but that Russian forces continue to make gains thanks to a “strong concentration of artillery.” She emphasized that crossing the Seversky Donets River was “vital” for Russian forces as they prepared to shift their focus to the Donetsk region.
In the latest developments, a video clip showed the extent of the great damage suffered by Rubezny in the Lugansk region in eastern Ukraine, as Russian forces seek to encircle the cities of Severodonetsk, Lishansk and Rubezny.
The Russian Defense Ministry said that the Russian air defense systems had shot down a Ukrainian Su-25 fighter in the Sergevka Donetsk region, a Mi-8 helicopter in the Kharkov region, and seven Ukrainian drones.
The President of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, said that the fighters of the Chechen units and the People’s Militia of the Luhansk Republic had completed the cleansing of the city of Severodonetsk from Ukrainian nationalists, as he put it.
On the other hand, the head of the regional military administration in Kherson, Ukraine said that His country’s forces regained control of more than 20 residential areas of the Russian forces in the region. He added that the Ukrainian forces continue to advance and regain control of Kherson, adding that regarding half of the population has left the region, according to the Ukrainian News Agency.
He also stressed that the fighting continues on the front line in the south of the country, and that The Ukrainian army launched a counter-attack in some areas, indicating that the Russian army is blowing up bridges over the Ingolets River. Today, Wednesday, Russian forces advanced closer to the center of an industrial city in an effort to control a large area of eastern Ukraine.
For his part, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the Ukrainian forces lose between 60 and 100 dead and 500 wounded daily in the ongoing battles.
He said that the Russian forces, since the beginning of the war, have killed 243 children and wounded 446 others, adding that “these are the only ones we know. We do not have all the information so far from the currently occupied territories.”
The Ukrainian president vowed to hold Russia accountable, saying that the Ukrainian people would not surrender, adding: “We must ensure that everyone who killed, tortured or deported Ukrainians is held accountable. The inevitability of punishment is a principle that Ukraine will teach Russia. But first of all, we must teach them on the battlefield that Ukraine cannot be occupied, our people will not surrender, our children will not become the property of the invaders.”
