More Than 300 Settlements Already De-Occupied in Kharkiv Region

The Defence Forces of Ukraine have liberated more than 300 settlements in the Kharkiv region in a week.

“The operation to liberate the Kharkiv region lasted several days and was planned for several days. Since 6 September, 3,800 square kilometres have been liberated, more than 300 settlements,” Deputy Minister of Defence of Ukraine Hanna Malyar said during a nationwide telethon.

She added that about 150,000 Ukrainians were freed from the Russian occupation, in which our people had actually been held hostage.

“The resilience and spirit of Ukrainians are impressive because the Russians deprived them of communication. In fact, no one had the opportunity to find out what was happening in the Ukraine-controlled part. They were told that there was no Ukraine, that there was already another president in Ukraine, that Ukraine would not come for them. But everyone we talked to today waited patiently, believed that the Armed Forces would come and liberate them,” the deputy minister emphasised.

She also clarified that the operation was ongoing, everything was planned until the complete liberation of the Kharkiv region.

At the same time, Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov stated that the counteroffensive of the Armed Forces in the Kherson region was progressing more slowly than in the Kharkiv region as the Kherson region is an agricultural region “with irrigation canals.”

According to the minister, the Russian military may use irrigation canals as defensive trenches.

He also added that there was information that Russia had sent so-called “Kadyrov’s soldiers” to the Kherson region, whose task is to prevent Russian troops from leaving their positions.

Bohdan Marusyak