Kyiv: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi said that the second phase of the offensive operation, which began in the middle of last month, is continuing and that its forces have recaptured 2,500 square kilometers of territory previously occupied by Russia. Zelensky said that this week alone, 776 square kilometers of territory in eastern Ukraine and 29 settlements, including six in Luhansk, had been recaptured. After Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that he had annexed four of Ukraine’s provinces, Ukraine continues to move toward these areas. In the first phase, which took place from September 6 to 12, Ukraine recaptured 8,000 square kilometers of territory.
