Terekhov said that the soldiers sent by Moscow only managed to enter a small part of the town, located in the northwest of the country, but that they did not stay there for long.
The Kremlin did not confirm this setback, although, on the contrary, the Russian Defense Ministry reported that it provided 50 tons of humanitarian aid to residents of the region of Kharkov the district where the homonymous city is located.
“The Russian military provided medical aid and delivered 50 tons of humanitarian aid to civilians in the region of Kharkov. Food and basic necessities were sent to the towns. First of all, necessary assistance is provided to families with children,” said a statement reproduced by the Sputnik news agency.
The president of Ukraine, Volodimir Zelenski, stressed last night that more than 1,000 towns in the region were vacated.
“As of today, 1,015 localities have been vacated, six more in the last 24 hours,” assured the president, who assessed that “the progressive liberation of the region of Kharkov shows that we will not leave anyone in the hands of the enemy”.
For his part, the governor of the region, Oleh Synyehubov, said that “the Russians are going back”, but clarified that the situation remains dangerous and people should consider their safety before returning.
“It is too early to relax. I urge everyone to respond appropriately to the alarms and not to be on the road unnecessarily,” said the leader.
Ukrainian authorities believe the Kremlin will redirect troops southeast to the city of Izium, where they are reportedly being reinforced.
Izium is about two hours from Kharkov and became a crucial operations center for Russia.
In late March, weeks after launching its invasion on February 24, Moscow backed away from taking kyiv to focus on southern and eastern Kiev. Ukraine, where it occupies extensive strips of land but few nuclei of importance.
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