UKRAINE, May 14 ------ Russia pounded more than 30 villages and towns in Kharkiv after launching a ground offensive in the northeastern Ukrainian region, forcing almost 6,000 people to evacuate, its governor said.
Ukraine's General Staff acknowledged on Monday that Russia was currently "achieving tactical success" after driving a wedge into Kyiv's defenses.
Russia's Defense Ministry said on Monday that troops had "improved the tactical position and dealt a blow to (Ukrainian) manpower" around border villages that included Lyptsi, as well as the town of Vovchansk. "They are shelling the villages, firing on everything they can," Sergiy Kryvetchenko, deputy head of the military administration in Lyptsi, told Agence France-Presse (AFP). Russia began its offensive across its border into Kharkiv last Friday and later claimed to have taken several villages in the region near the border. The situation in Kharkiv is "complex and dynamically changing," with Russian troops mounting assaults in various areas, Ukraine's General Staff said.
Kharkiv Gov. Oleg Synegubov wrote on social media that over the last day, "more than 30" towns and villages "were struck by enemy artillery and mortar attacks," wounding at least nine people. Some areas were also bombed by Russian aircraft, he added.
Source: manilatimes.net
Comments