Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu ordered his troops to withdraw from the occupied Ukrainian city of Kherson in one of Russia’s most significant retreats during the nine-month-old war in Ukraine.
Russia’s commander in Ukraine, General Sergei Surovikin, said on Russian state TV that it was no longer possible to keep supplying the city, situated on the banks of the Dnipro River.
“I understand that this is a very difficult decision, but at the same time we will preserve the most important thing – the lives of our servicemen and, in general, the combat effectiveness of the group of troops, which it is futile to keep on the right bank in a limited area,” he said.
Russian troops retreating from Kherson means Russia pulling out entirely from the western bank of the River Dnipro and is seen as a significant Ukrainian counter-offensive.
No comments
President Vladimir Putin, who in September announced Russia’s annexation of Kherson, and three other occupied regions, has not yet commented on withdrawal from the region.
Ukraine cautious
Ukrainian authorities cautioned against Russian forces’ decision to pull back from the region, doubting this could be a trap. President Volodymyr Zelensky said Wednesday night that Ukraine was moving “very carefully” after the announcement as they do not expect “gifts” and “goodwill gestures” from the enemy.
“The enemy does not give us gifts, does not make ‘goodwill gestures’, we win it all,” said Zelensky in his nightly address on Wednesday. “Therefore, we are moving very carefully, without emotions, without unnecessary risk, in the interests of liberating all our land and so that the losses are as small as possible,” he added.
Russian troops still in Kherson
Civilians in the region have reported that despite Russian announcement of pulling troops back, Chechen troops from the Russian military are in the city, in cafes, and moving around the streets.
“Visually, nothing has changed. On the right bank [western bank] in Kherson, they are almost invisible, and it has been [like that] for several days. They have already taken everything they could,” a civilian told BBC.
“There are a lot of them on the left bank, and they are building fortifications along the Dnipro and Plavni,” he added.