An the day Russian President Vladimir Putin declared martial law in the occupied territories, Russia is reporting on a Ukrainian counter-offensive in the Kherson region. According to this, the Ukrainian army has gathered tens of thousands of soldiers to liberate occupied areas and launched the first attacks. According to their own statements, the Russian occupation authorities are therefore withdrawing completely from the regional capital, Cherson.
The head of the Russian occupiers appointed by Russia, Vladimir Saldo, told the Russian broadcaster Rossiya 24 on Wednesday: “From today, all government structures of the city, the civil and military administration, all ministries, will be moved to the left bank of the river (of the Dnipro, d Red.) relocated”. However, the Russian army will fight “to the death” in the city against the advancing Ukrainian troops.
Earlier, Saldo announced to the state news agency Tass that around 50,000 to 60,000 people will be taken to the east bank of the Dnieper or to Russia. The “evacuation” is expected to last about six days. Boats are already waiting, said Saldo. Residents of the area are said to have already been informed of the plans via SMS.
Commander-in-Chief describes situation as “tense”
His deputy, Kirill Stremousov, called on the civilian population via Telegram to leave the regional capital of Kherson. The Ukrainians went on the offensive towards the towns of Nova Kamianka and Beryslav, Stremusov wrote on Wednesday. According to the occupiers, the resettlement of residents has already begun.
The new commander-in-chief of the Russian occupation forces in Ukraine, Sergey Surovikin, admitted on Tuesday evening that the situation in the region was difficult. The situation can be described as tense, said Surovikin in an interview with Rossiya 24. “The enemy is targeting infrastructure and residential buildings,” he explained.
In the past few weeks, Russian troops west of the Dnipro have been pushed back by 20 to 30 kilometers. They are now threatened with being pushed back to the west bank of the river. From there, it is difficult for them to get to the rest of the Russian-controlled area. Artillery hits made Ukraine’s crossings over the Dnipro impassable, Surovkin also told Rossiya 24.
The city of Cherson fell into Russian hands in March as the only Ukrainian regional capital. Almost 300,000 people lived here before the war. In October, President Putin announced that the area would be annexed to Russia, which led to sharp criticism internationally – among other things, a clear majority in the UN General Assembly condemned the sham referendums. On Wednesday afternoon Vladimir Putin declared martial law in the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhia regions. He announced this at a televised meeting of the Russian Security Council. According to a decree published by the Kremlin, the decision will come into force on Thursday.
