Zelenskyy confirms counterattacks in south for first time: AFU have liberated 300 sq km as of today
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that, against the backdrop of the Kremlin’s demands at the talks, Ukrainian troops are making gains in liberating territory on the southern sectors of the front.
He said this in an interview with AFP, Censor.NET reports.
Ukraine advances in the south
The outlet recalls that US-brokered talks in Geneva earlier this week produced no progress on the key issue of territory in any deal to end the conflict. Moscow has vowed to seize the whole of Donbas by force if Kyiv does not pull back, and Putin is showing no sign of compromising on his hard-line demands to end the four-year invasion.
Ukraine has repeatedly rejected the possibility of withdrawing its forces from the region, saying such a move would only embolden Russia.
The demand to hand territory over to Russia came at a time when, according to Zelenskyy, Kyiv’s forces are gaining momentum in counteroffensive operations on the southern front.
"I won't go into too many details, but today I can congratulate our army first and foremost, all the defence forces, because as of today, 300 square kilometres have been liberated, "the president said.
Zelenskyy is also confident that Ukraine will not lose the war, but "the question is whether we will win".
What contributed to this?
Military bloggers have suggested that some of the successes of Ukraine’s Armed Forces in the south may have been helped by a mass shutdown of Starlink internet terminals along the entire front line in Ukraine after the network’s owner Elon Musk switched them off at Kyiv’s request.
Zelenskyy said that Kyiv took advantage of the situation, but acknowledged to AFP that Ukrainian forces also experienced disruptions due to the shutdown.
"There are problems, there are challenges," the head of state noted, adding that the setbacks facing the Russian side are "much more serious".
- It should be recalled that the commander of the 1st Separate Assault Regiment named after Dmytro Kotsiubailo recently spoke of "some successes" by Ukrainian forces in the Huliaipole direction, which "cannot yet be disclosed, as the operation is ongoing". However, he added that the information about the situation in this direction that the Russians are now spreading on their Telegram channels "reflects reality".
