KHARKIV: Ukraine warned on Thursday that it faced a very tough military situation in its northeast Kharkiv region, where Russia has made its largest territorial advances in 18 months since launching a surprise offensive last week.
As Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Kyiv was sending yet more reinforcements to the region, the Ukrainian army said it had managed to partially halt Moscow’s advance.
Kyiv also accused Russian forces of executing civilians in territory it had captured over the last week. The fresh Russian offensive has further stretched Ukraine’s outgunned and outmanned troops.
Moscow has seized 278 square kilometres of Ukrainian territory between May 9 and 15, according to AFP calculations based on data from the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) — the largest advance gain in a single operation since mid-December 2022.
Ukraine President Held Meeting
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday met military leaders in Kharkiv city, about thirty kilometres from the Russian border to assess Ukraine’s defensive efforts.
He said in a post on Telegram that the situation in the Kharkiv region is generally under control, and Ukraine’s soldiers are inflicting significant losses on the occupier. However, the area remains extremely challenging. Kyiv is reinforcing its units.
Ukraine’s army said earlier it had managed to halt the advancing Russian troops in some places.
Army spokesman Nazar Voloshin said on state TV on Thursday that Ukraine’s defence forces have partially stabilised the situation. The advance of the enemy in certain zones and areas has been halted.
In a daily briefing, Ukraine’s General Staff said its troops had significantly reduced the activity of the Russian occupiers. But the enemy forces are still trying to create the conditions for further advances, Voloshin warned.
Ukraine Says Halted Russian 'Advance' in Some Kharkiv Zones #UkrainianArmedForces #Ukraine #RussianTroops #KharkivRegion #RussianAdvance https://t.co/Pb2vxcdGiq
— Global News (@News247Global) May 16, 2024
