Ukraine’s forces have withdrawn from the bombed-out city of Lysychansk, prompting Russia to claim full control of the eastern Luhansk region, a key Kremlin war goal, but President Volodymyr Zelensky vowed to regain the lost territory.
Ukraine on Sunday said the tactical withdrawal would save the lives of its soldiers who would regroup, to launch a counter offensive with the help of long-range Western weapons.
But Moscow said the capture of Lysychansk less than a week after taking neighbouring Sievierdonetsk meant it had “liberated” Luhansk. It said it will give Luhansk to the self-proclaimed Russian-backed Luhansk People’s Republic whose independence it recognised on the eve of the war.
Explained | The impact of the Ukraine-Russia crisis on global agricultural markets
The battlefield focus now shifts to the neighbouring Donetsk region, where Kyiv still controls swathes of territory.
Here are the latest updates:
Ukraine lays out $750 billion 'recovery plan' for postwar future
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday said the reconstruction of his war-battered country is the “common task of the entire democratic world,” as Ukraine’s Prime Minister laid out a $750 billion recovery plan once the war with Russia ends.
“The reconstruction of Ukraine is not a local project, is not a project of one nation, but a common task of the entire democratic world — all countries, all countries who can say they are civilized," Zelenskyy told hundreds of attendees in Lugano. ”Restoring Ukraine means restoring the principles of life, restoring the space of life, restoring everything that makes humans humans."
The task, which is already under way in some areas that were taken from Russian forces, aims to leverage outside expertise, government funds and work of Ukrainians to rebuild hospitals, schools, government buildings, homes and apartments — but also water pipes, gas lines and other battered infrastructure. -AFP
Vladimir Putin declares victory in embattled Donbas region of Luhansk
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday declared victory in the eastern Ukrainian region of Luhansk, one day after Ukrainian forces withdrew from their last remaining bulwark of resistance in the province.
Russia's Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu reported to Mr. Putin in a televised meeting on Monday that Russian forces had taken control of Luhansk, which together with the neighbouring Donetsk province makes up Ukraine's industrial heartland of Donbas.
Mr. Shoigu told Mr. Putin that “the operation” was completed on Sunday after Russian troops overran the city of Lysychansk, the last stronghold of Ukrainian forces in Luhansk.
Putin orders Ukraine offensive to continue after capture of Lugansk
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday ordered Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu to press ahead with Moscow’s offensive in Ukraine after troops took control of the entire Lugansk region.
“Military units, including the East group and the West group, must carry out their tasks according to previously approved plans,” Putin told Shoigu.
“I hope that everything will continue in their direction as has happened in Lugansk so far.”
Shoigu told Putin this weekend that Moscow’s forces were now in full control of the Lugansk region, a major victory for the Kremlin more than four months after its leader sent troops into Ukraine. -AFP
Ukraine flag raised again on Snake Island, military says
The Ukrainian flag has been raised again on Snake Island in the Black Sea, a Ukrainian military spokesperson said on Monday, after Russian troops withdrew from the strategic outpost last week.
“The territory (Snake Island) has been returned to the jurisdiction of Ukraine,” Natalia Humeniuk, spokesperson for Ukraine’s southern military command, told a news conference.-Reuters
Putin congratulates Russian troops on ‘liberating’ Ukraine’s Luhansk region
President Vladimir Putin on Monday congratulated Russian troops on “liberating” the eastern Ukrainian region of Luhansk, a significant milestone for Moscow in its military campaign in Ukraine.
In a televised meeting with Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, Putin said the troops involved in the operation to capture the Luhansk region should rest but that other military units should continue fighting.-Reuters
Turkey halts Russian ship, investigates Ukrainian claims -senior official
Turkey has halted a Russian-flagged cargo ship off its Black Sea coast and is investigating a Ukrainian claim that it was carrying stolen grain, a senior Turkish official said on Monday.
Ukraine’s ambassador to Turkey said on Sunday the Zhibek Zholy ship was detained by Turkish customs authorities. Ukraine previously asked Turkey to detain the vessel, according to an official and documents viewed by Reuters.
Russian cosmonauts celebrate capture of Ukraine’s Luhansk region in space
Russian cosmonauts aboard the International Space Station on Monday celebrated Russia’s capture of the eastern Ukrainian region of Luhansk, a significant milestone for Moscow in the war.
Roscosmos, the Russian space agency, described Moscow’s capture of the Luhansk region as “a liberation day to celebrate both on Earth and in space.”
The agency posted pictures of cosmonauts Oleg Artemyev, Denis Matveev and Sergei Korsakov smiling as they held up flags of Russia’s proxies in eastern Ukraine, the self-proclaimed Luhansk People’s Republic and Donetsk People’s Republic.
“This is a long-awaited day that the residents of the occupied areas of the Luhansk region had been waiting eight years for,” Roscosmos wrote on the Telegram messaging app.-Reuters
Hell on earth: Ukrainian soldiers on eastern front
Ukrainian soldiers returning from the front lines in eastern Ukraine’s Donbas region — where Russia is waging a fierce offensive — describe life during what has turned into a grueling war of attrition as apocalyptic.
In interviews with The Associated Press, some complained of chaotic organisation, desertions and mental health problems caused by relentless shelling. Others spoke of high morale, their colleagues’ heroism, and a commitment to keep fighting, even as the better-equipped Russians control more of the combat zone. - AP
Fighting continues in pockets of Luhansk: Governor
Some isolated fighting continues in two villages of Luhansk region where Russia is yet to establish control, the Luhansk governor Serhiy Haidai told Reuters.
He added that Ukraine “could have continued” defence of Lysychansk but its forces would have been surrounded and pounded by Russian heavy artillery.
“Russia’s focus will now shift to Donetsk region, and to Sloviansk and Bakhmut in particular,” he said.
Western firms struggle to exit Russia
For foreign companies still working out what to do with their stranded Russian assets, President Vladimir Putin’s seizure of a major oil and gas project is a powerful warning: Move fast or else.
Companies have been wrestling with how to exit in ways that limit the financial impact, do not put employees at risk and, in some cases, offer the opportunity to return in future.
More than a thousand Western companies have joined a corporate exodus from Russia - unprecedented in its scale and speed - as they scramble to comply with sanctions and amid threats of retaliation from the Kremlin.
The obstacles are huge: confusion has swirled over what the Kremlin would allow foreign companies to do; staff are nervous after government threats of retaliation; sanctions have limited the pool of buyers and there is little time to check them out; sales prices have been steeply discounted; and negotiations are being done virtually because fears of reprisals make it too risky to visit Russia in person.
With Moscow preparing a new law that is expected to come into force soon allowing it to take control of the local businesses of Western companies that decide to leave, the stakes are getting higher. - Reuters
Military base hit
Ukraine said its air force had flown some 15 sorties “in virtually all directions of hostilities”, destroying equipment and two ammunition depots.
In the Russian-occupied southern Ukrainian city of Melitopol, Ukrainian forces hit a military logistics base with more than 30 strikes on Sunday, the city’s exiled mayor Ivan Fedorov said. A Russian-installed official confirmed that strikes had hit the city. - Reuters
Costly campaign
Thousands of civilians have been killed and cities levelled since Russia invaded on Feb 24, with Kyiv accusing Moscow of deliberately targeting civilians. Moscow denies this.
Russia says what it calls a “special military operation” in Ukraine aims to protect Russian speakers from nationalists. Ukraine and its Western allies say this is a baseless pretext for flagrant aggression that aims to seize territory.
While Russia would try to frame its advance in Luhansk as a significant moment in the war, it came at a high cost to Russia’s military, said Neil Melvin of the London-based think tank RUSI.
“Ukraine’s position was never that they could defend all of this. What they’ve been trying to do is to slow down the Russian assault and cause maximum damage, while they build up for a counteroffensive,” he said. - Reuters
Russian defence minister tells Putin Ukraine's Luhansk region has been 'liberated'
Russia's Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu informed President Vladimir Putin that all of Ukraine's Luhansk region had been "liberated" by Russian and separatist forces, the defence ministry said on Sunday.
After being beaten back in its initial attempt to capture the capital Kyiv, Russia has focused its efforts on driving Ukrainian forces out of Luhansk and Donetsk regions in the east of the country, where Moscow-backed separatists have been fighting Kyiv since Russia's first military intervention in Ukraine in 2014. - Reuters
