Thousands of Russian troops withdrew due to a Ukrainian lightning counterattack in the northeast of the country.
For days, Ukrainian forces have advanced through Kharkov in a decisive military campaign in the nearly seven-month war.
The Russian Defense Ministry confirmed today that Russian forces withdrew from key Izium and Balakli military bases after Ukraine stormed the front lines.
The ministry said Moscow had decided to “regroup” in Donetsk in the Donbass region, saying it was a pre-planned move.
Just six months ago Russian forces captured Izumi after weeks of fighting and planned yesterday to reinforce the city’s defences.
“Idium was launched today,” Mayor Valery Marchenko told The New York Times.
However, it is unclear how secure the gains are and how long they will last.
The announcement came after the UK Ministry of Defense said in a briefing that the Ukrainians had marched 50 kilometers to Kharkov through Russia.
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“Russian forces were probably taken by surprise. The sector was only lightly controlled and Ukrainian forces occupied or surrounded several towns,” the Defense Ministry said.
The defense official added that this has left Russian forces around Izium “increasingly isolated” and they are likely to cut off supplies.
Ukrainian forces also captured Kupiansk, a major railway town that supplies Russian forces in the region.
Ukraine’s security service, known as SBU, shared a photo of a soldier in front of the city hall building on Telegram.
The staff unfurled the flag of the 92nd Mechanized Detachment Battalion of the Ukrainian Army.
“Free our land to the last centimeter! We are advancing! Glory to Ukraine!” They say in the agency.
And it wasn’t just Kupyansk: the Ukrainian Defense Ministry tweeted: “The city of Balakli in the Kharkov province has been liberated by the Ukrainian army!”
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The ministry released a video showing the army raising the Ukrainian flag in the center of the city.
“Balakria is Ukraine!” The Ukrainian flag was raised today,” Kharkov Governor Oleg Sinegubov told Telegram.
“Boys and girls in arms, today we are proud to write a new history for a free Ukraine.
President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed yesterday that Ukrainian forces have “liberated and controlled more than 30 settlements” in Kharkov.
“We will return the Ukrainian flag and the protection of our people everywhere,” he said.
Ukraine last week recaptured at least 2,500 square kilometers of former pro-Kremlin Kharkov, according to the US think tank’s War Institute.
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Source: Metro
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