KYIV, Ukraine – July 05 (ONLINE) Russian forces set their sights on their next objectives in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk province on Tuesday after President Vladimir Putin claimed victory in neighbouring Luhansk province and the five-month long war entered a new phase.
The capture of the city of Lysychansk on Sunday completed the Russian conquest of Luhansk, one of two regions in Donbas, the industrialised eastern region of Ukraine that has become the site of the biggest battle in Europe in generations.
Both sides have suffered heavy casualties in the fight for Luhansk, particularly during the siege of the twin cities of Lysychansk and Sievierodonetsk. Both cities have been left in ruins by relentless Russian bombardment.
“The city doesn’t exist anymore,” said Nina, a young mother who has fled Lysychansk to take refuge in the central city of Dnipro.
“It has practically been wiped off the face of the Earth. There is no humanitarian aid distribution centre, it has been hit. The building which used to house the centre does not exist any more. Just like many of our houses.”
Ukrainian forces on Tuesday took up new defensive lines in Donetsk, where they still control major cities, while Putin told his troops to “absolutely rest and recover their military preparedness”, while units in other areas keep fighting.
Russian forces shelled the towns of Sloviansk and Kramatorsk overnight, according to Pavlo Kyrylenko, the governor of Donetsk.
“They are now also the main line of assault for the enemy,” he said of the towns. “There is no safe place without shelling in Donetsk region.”
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