Russia’s military intervention in Ukraine will continue “until targets are met,” the Kremlin assured on Monday, at a time when Moscow forces had been forced to withdraw following Kiev’s military offensives in recent days.
“The special military operation will continue until the objectives initially set are achieved”Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov told the press, admitting that currently “There are no prospects for negotiations” between Moscow and Kiev.
Also in Moscow, Russia’s defense ministry said it carried out a series of high-precision missile strikes this Monday morning against Ukrainian military positions in the east, center and south of the country, including the Kharkov region, where a counter-offensive is underway. Ukrainian.
“Russian aerospace forces and artillery carry out high-precision attacks on units and reserves of the Ukrainian army in the Kharkov region”said Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov.
According to the spokesman, the attacks targeted troops and war equipment belonging to the nationalist Kraken units, the 113th Territorial Defense Brigade and the 93rd Mechanized Brigade, located in the cities of Kupiansk and Izium, recently recovered by Ukraine.
“The enemy’s losses amounted to 250 soldiers and more than 20 combat teams”declared.
In the Zaporijia and Donetsk regions, Konashenkov continued, the Russian army attacked four Ukrainian command posts, 36 artillery units, 125 military and equipment assembly areas, and a repair shop for several launch systems.
In addition, the Russian command spokesman stated that the aerospace forces attacked a military target in the town of Rogui, in the Cherkasy region, in the center of the country.
Hours earlier, the Ukrainian army in Kiev announced that it had recaptured “more than 20 locations” in 24 hours as part of its counter-offensive against the Russian army in eastern Ukraine.
“The liberation of places from Russian invaders continues in the regions of Kharkiv and Donetsk” (East). All along the front line, Ukrainian forces managed to drive the enemy out of more than 20 locations.” within 24 hours, the Ukrainian army said in its morning report.
“During the withdrawal, Russian troops hastily left their positions and fled”the army said.
On Sunday, Ukraine claimed to have restored about 3,000 square kilometers of territory, mostly in the Kharkiv region, since early September.
On Sunday evening, several regions in the east, north, south and center of the country experienced extensive power outages, which Ukrainian authorities have blamed on Russian attacks. Thermoelectric power plant number 5, the second in the country, was hit near Kharkiv.
However, in an interview with the French newspaper Le Monde published on Monday, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said the war in Ukraine has entered a “third phase” and that Kiev’s current military successes “will have a snowball” which will only stop with the Russian defeat.
“The counter-offensive campaign is the third phase. The first is to deter the Russians, the second is to balance them and us on the fronts, stabilize and test the Russian resistance .”explained Reznikov.
“Our General Staff devised a plan based on the weapons we received from our partners. We started using Himar’s mobile artillery systems to cut through the enemy’s logistical support lines, to destroy the fuel and ammunition depots. And this is the third phase of the war, which started in the south and in the north, in the Kherson and Kharkov districts”he added.
Ukraine’s objectives, Reznikov emphasized, are the liberation of all occupied territories, “including Crimea, Luhansk and Donetsk”and the establishment of border posts where they were in 1991.
In addition to the “total liberation” of the Ukrainian territories, Kiev calls for a “absolutely clear roadmap on paying Russian reparations and establishing Moscow’s responsibility for war crimes” committed since the start of the invasion on February 24.
Asked about the possibility of a long war, Reznikov declined to make predictions, arguing, however, that Ukraine will win.
“It will be like a snowball. It will start to roll, roll, roll and it will get bigger and bigger and bigger… And we will see the second army in the world retreat”rounded.
Source: DN
