Russia Pull Its Army In Kherson, Ukrainian Troops Rebut 12 Settlements

Commander of the Ukrainian Armed Forces General Valeriy Zaluzhnyi. (Source: President.gov.ua)

JAKARTA - Kyiv forces managed to advance seven km (4.3 miles) in two directions south, reclaiming 12 new settlements in the past 24 hours, the Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, General Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, said on Thursday.

Russia said on Wednesday its troops would withdraw from the western bank of the Dnipro River, which includes Kherson, the only regional capital Moscow has captured since it invaded Ukraine in February.

General Zaluzhnyi said Ukrainian troops had advanced from the Pervomaiske Order to Kherson. And from Petropavlivka to Novoraysk, approximately parallel to the Dnipro River. It's not clear which Pervomaisme he meant.

He said the territorial gain reached 264 square km (102 square miles).

"We have not been able to confirm or deny information about the so-called withdrawal of Russian occupation troops from Kherson. We continue to carry out offensive operations in accordance with our plans," he wrote in a post on Telegram.

Separately, an adviser to Ukraine's president said Russia wanted to turn Kherson into a "city of death", accusing Moscow of mines ranging from apartments to ditches, planning to fire on the city from the other side of the Dnipro River.

As previously reported, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu ordered his troops to withdraw from the western bank of the Dnipro River, near Kherson's southern strategic city of Ukraine, in a significant setback for Moscow and a potential turning point in the war.

However, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky did not want to overdo the announcement, calling Ukrainian forces step by step to strengthen its position in the South.

"There is a lot of joy in today's information room, and it's clear why. But, the enemy will not reward us," President Zelensky said, calling Kherson only once in his five-minute speech.

Separately, US President Joe Biden said Moscow's order to withdraw from Kherson was "a testament to the fact that they have some real problems with the Russian military."

It is known that if Ukrainian troops seized all of Dnipro's western edge, US-supplied long-range artillery and double-HIMars rocket launchers would be able to attack Russian bases and logistics positions on the east bank, according to military experts.