A day after Moscow declared that its forces had decided to withdraw from its stronghold north of the Donetsk region, which it had controlled for months, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky declared on Sunday that the main eastern town of Lyman is “completely free” of Russian forces. Lyman had been under Russian control for months.
Zelensky posted a brief video on his Telegram channel saying, “As of 12:30 (09:30 GMT), Lyman has been entirely evacuated.”
Russian forces utilised Lyman as a supply and transportation hub for their operations in the northern Donetsk region, and it fell to them in May. Since its lightning-quick assault in the northeastern Kharkiv region last month, its recapture signified Ukraine’s greatest war triumph.
In the Donbass region, which includes the predominantly Russian-controlled Donetsk and Lugansk regions, Zelensky promised further swift victories.
“There have been more Ukrainian flags flying in the Donbass over the past week. In a week, there will be more of them “In a speech delivered Saturday through video link, he stated.
In a statement released on Sunday, the Ukrainian armed forces claimed that during the previous 24 hours, their planes had carried out 29 strikes, destroying weapons and anti-aircraft missile systems. In addition, ground forces had targeted command centres and depots housing anti-aircraft missile and ammunition stockpiles.
According to the Ukrainian statement, Russian forces attacked infrastructure with four missile launches, 16 airstrikes, and drones built in Iran called the Shahed-136. More than 30 residential villages, mostly in the south and southeast, were also affected, he noted.
Putin’s allies, like Ramzan Kadyrov, the head of Chechnya in southern Russia, are enraged by Ukraine’s achievements.
Before Zelensky’s speech, Kadyrov said on Telegram that “in my own opinion, tougher actions should be implemented, such as imposing martial law in border areas and employing low-yield nuclear weapons.”
However, Kadyrov’s call has been the most direct. Other Russian politicians, such as former President Dmitry Medvedev, have stated that Russia may be forced to use nuclear weapons.
Putin stated last week that he was prepared to protect Russia’s “territorial integrity” with all possible measures, and he made it quite clear on Friday that this also applies to the new territories that Moscow has annexed.
Washington claims that it will react forcefully to any nuclear weapon use.
Reuters said that although the Russian military has long been trained to do so, analysts at the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank, said the Russian military in its current state is almost probably unable to endure a nuclear conflict.
Less than 24 hours after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the annexation of the territory and vowed to defend it with all available military might, Russian forces withdrew from the eastern city of Lyman in the Donetsk region, and Ukrainian forces advanced there on Saturday.
According to the Defense Ministry, Russian forces withdrew as the Ukrainian counterattack came near the city in order to avoid “the possibility of encirclement.”
The loss of Lyman, a crucial launching pad for Moscow’s campaign in the northern Donetsk area, is a setback for the Russian president, who on Friday annexed the region along with three other Ukrainian provinces.
Since the only departure route east has been inside Ukrainian artillery range for the previous few days, it is unknown how many Russian forces were stationed at Lyman or withdrew as the Ukrainian army encircled the city. An estimated 5,500 Russian forces were stationed at Lyman as of Friday.
According to the New York Times, after leaving Lyman on Saturday, Russia’s forces in eastern Ukraine are now in a more perilous situation.
Lyman is situated on the Seversky Donets River’s northeastern bank, and now that Ukrainian forces have retaken the city, they will have a secure foothold on that side of the river that they can use to advance further east and exert pressure on the Russian front lines created as a result of their recent defeats around Kharkiv.
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Ukraine declares the complete “cleaning” of Lyman of Russian forces as its biggest field success.
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