President of Russia Vladimir Putin Tonight (Friday) publicly approved the evacuation of civilians from the Kherson region in southern Ukraine, when this is the latest sign of Moscow’s withdrawal from one of the most difficult regions in Ukraine.
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“Now, of course, those living in Kherson must be evacuated from the area of the most dangerous operations, because the civilian population should not suffer,” Putin told pro-Kremlin activists as he marked Russia’s National Unity Day.
Residents of Kherson expel Russian military forces (Photo: Reuters)Moscow has already begun evacuating occupied Kherson, and even this week announced that the evacuation zone would be expanded by about 15 km. But as mentioned, this is the first time that Putin refers to the evacuation in his voice. According to Russia, it is moving the residents to a safe place due to fear of Ukrainian advances. On the other hand, in Kiev they claimed Because these measures included the forced deportation of civilians – a war crime that Russia denies.
Putin’s remarks come amid signs that Russia may be preparing to abandon its military hold on the west bank of the Dnieper River, including the regional capital of Kherson – thus becoming one of the biggest Russian retreats of the war.
Russia: Putin is preparing to announce the annexation of the occupied territories in Ukraine in the coming days (Photo: Reuters)