Ukrainian forces cross the Lugansk border and US National Security Council comments on Putin's threats
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Devastating Russian mechanisms in the Kharkiv region of north-eastern Ukraine (Anadolu) |
How big is the Ukrainian Armed Forces?
The Ukrainian forces are seeking to continue their accelerated progress, after extending their full control over the strategic town of Lehman in Donetsk province, heading towards the triangle cities of Severodonetsk, Lysychansk and Rubigny, the most important cities of Lugansk province.
Pro-Russian separatist administration spokesman Andrei Maruchko, in a statement to Interfax, said that despite the significant human casualties of Ukrainian forces, according to him, they had crossed the province's borders and were stationed in the Lysychansk axis.
Who controls the Donetsk region?
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Sunday that his country's forces had taken full control of the strategic town of Lehmann, noting that more Ukrainian flags would fly in Donbas within a week.
The Donbas region in eastern Ukraine includes the provinces of Donetsk and Lugansk, which Russia announced last Friday to annex to its territory, together with the provinces of Kherson and Zaparugya (southern Ukraine).
Zelensky confirmed that Ukrainian forces had also made progress in the south of the country and regained control of towns north-east of Kherson, thanking his hometown fighters in the city of Krivi Rih, who had made progress in the region.
Breakthroughs
For his part, Vladimir Saldo, governor of the Kherson region, appointed by Moskov, acknowledged that Ukrainian forces had achieved some successes in the region and had taken control of some residential communities.
In a televised speech, Saldo added, "Let us describe the situation as tense; Where the Kakhovka reservoir is located, there is a residential congregation called Dodchani, in this area, there is a breakthrough and there are residential congregations seized by Ukrainian forces. "
In the same vein, the Russian Ministry of Defence acknowledged in its most recent statement on Monday that Ukrainian forces had penetrated their defences on the axis of Zolotaya Balka and Alexandrovka, "thanks to numerical superiority in tank units".
How much of Ukraine does Russia control?
The Ministry announced that the Russian army had targeted Ukrainian forces on the axes of Kobyansk, Lehman, Artyumovsk and Donetsk.Duma Vote.
Politically, the Russian State Duma on Monday ratified the conventions of accession to the Russian Federation by the "Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics" and the Kherson and Zaparugia provinces.
During the meeting, more than 400 deputies voted unanimously in favour of annexing these areas as part of the Russian Federation.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who attended the meeting, announced that these areas would now be under special protection.
Lavrov said the inhabitants of the four regions "determined their destiny by their own hands and asked to join Russia."
What areas did Russia annexe?
Last Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed agreements with the leaders of these regions to accept them within the territory of the Russian Federation, following referendums in the four provinces, which western powers denounced as sham and false.
The United States asserted that it would never recognize Russia's annexation of those areas, none of which is entirely under the control of Russian forces.
In this context, U.S. National Security Council Communications Coordinator John Kirby stated today that Washington will not count attacks on Russian territory.
In his remarks, Kirby emphasized that the United States took the Russian President's threats of nuclear weapons seriously, but explained that Washington had yet to see any indication that Putin had made the decision to resort to nuclear weapons.
Source: nbz knowledge