With this, Russia has moved closer to the goal of capturing the entire Donbass region of Ukraine, he said.
Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu informed President Vladimir Putin that Russian troops, along with local militias, had “completely captured the city of Lisichansk”.
Ukrainian officials did not immediately clarify the situation.
Ukrainian troops have been trying to defend the city of Lisichansk for several weeks and are now weakening their position against Russia, while neighboring Svyarodonetsk has been taken over by Russia just a week ago.
The governor of Luhansk said early on Sunday that Russian forces were strengthening their position to capture the last remaining stronghold in Ukraine’s Luhansk province.
Governor Serhi Haidai said via the Telegram messaging app, “The occupiers (Russia) have sent their entire troops to the city of Lisichansk. Russian soldiers are brutally attacking the city. ,
“Russia has suffered heavy losses, but continues to hold the lead in the battlefield,” he said. The presence of Russian troops in the city is increasing.
It is noteworthy that a river separates Lisichansk from Svyarodonetsk.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s adviser, Oleksiy Erestovich, said in an online interview late Saturday that Russian forces had been able to cross the river for the first time and enter from the north, creating a “dangerous” situation.
Erestovich said they (Russian troops) had not yet reached the city center, but that the course of the Battle of Lisichansk would be decided by Monday.
Luhansk and neighboring Donetsk are the two provinces that make up the Donbass region. Russia is focusing on the region after withdrawing its troops from northern Ukraine and Kyiv this spring.
Pro-Russian separatists have held parts of the two provinces since 2014, and Moscow has recognized Luhansk and Donetsk as sovereign republics.
Syria’s government also said on Wednesday that it would recognize the two regions as “independent and sovereign” territories and work to establish diplomatic relations.
Vadim Lyakhi, the exiled mayor of the Russian-occupied city of Melitopol, claimed on Sunday that Ukrainian rockets had destroyed four Russian military bases in the city.
The governor of western Russia’s Belgorod region said on Sunday that four people were killed after being hit by fragments of a missile fired to intercept a Ukrainian missile.
Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed that two Ukrainian drones were shot down in the city of Kursk.
AP Dheeraj Subhash
Subhash
