Ukrainian forces push Russian troops back to borders in Kharkiv region

Europe, News May 18, 2022 , by IRIA No Comments

Russian troops are withdrawing from Ukraine’s second-largest city after bombarding it for weeks

The Ukrainian military said that the Russian forces have been pulling back from the Northeastern city of Kharkiv while protecting their exit routes. While commenting on the outcome of the ongoing situation in the Kharkiv region, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said Ukraine was “entering a new, long-term, phase of the war.”

A U.S.-based think tank, the Institute for the Study of War, had projected the withdrawal of Russian forces from Kharkiv since last week in an assessment report. The report stated that Russian forces have not made any significant advancements in Kharkiv.

The Ukrainian counteroffensive north of Kharkiv City has forced Russian troops onto the defensive and necessitated reinforcement and replenishment efforts intended to prevent further Ukrainian advances towards the Russian border.

Russian efforts along the Southern axis and in Donetsk and Luhansk region have to remain similarly stalled. Russian forces have also not made any significant gains in the face of continued successful Ukrainian defenses.

“Russian units have generally not attempted to hold ground against counterattacking Ukrainian forces over the past several days, with a few exceptions.” said the assessment report. Based on the recent trends and movements of the Russian forces, the report concluded that Russian troops would have to withdraw from the Northeastern cities in order to retain control of the Southern axis.

The Ukrainian military released a statement on Saturday, May 14, that the Russian forces are pulling back from the Kharkiv. According to the latest ground reports, some sources have confirmed that the Russian withdrawal from Kharkiv has been completed and the Ukrainian forces have now reached the Russia-Ukraine border in Kharkiv.

*^{Ukrainian armed forces. (Image Credit: Defense Intelligence of Ukraine)}*

Kharkiv is near the Russian border, about 800 kilometers away, close to the southwestern Russian city of Belgorod. Kharkiv has undergone heavy shelling and bombardment since the war started in February 2022. Kharkiv is largely a Russian-speaking city with a population of at least 1.4 million people.

Moscow was hoping to capture Ukraine’s second-largest city and industrial power hub with not much retaliation, however, the Ukrainian forces put up a significant counterattacking in order to push back the Russian forces after weeks of confrontation.

Kharkiv’s Governor Oleh Sinegubov announced via social media messaging platform that there has been no shelling or bombardment in Kharkiv in the past few days. He further stated that the Ukrainian military has now launched a counteroffensive operation in Izyum, a city 125 kilometers away from Kharkiv, that has been captured by the Russian forces since last month.