Ukraine said on Friday its forces were entering the southern city of Kherson and hailed a “major victory” after Russia announced its troops had withdrawn from the only regional capital it has captured after nearly nine months of fighting.
The announcement that the pullout from Moscow was over came hours after Russian strikes killed seven people in Mykolaiv, a town near Kherson that Russian troops have pummeled for months. “Kherson is returning to Ukrainian control and units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine are entering the city,” the Defense Ministry said on social media.
He added that his artillery teams had clear views on Russia’s withdrawal routes and warned: “Any attempts to oppose the Ukrainian Armed Forces will be stopped.” Russia earlier announced that it had finished withdrawing its troops.
But the Kremlin insisted that Kherson remained part of Russia and that it had no regrets about annexing the entire Kherson region in a lavish ceremony in late September.
“The transfer of Russian troops to the left bank was completed [oriental] of the Dnipro River. Not a single piece of military equipment and weapons was left on the right bank [occidental]”, the Russian Defense Ministry said.
Information of: israelnews.com
