(Kyiv) Intense fighting continued on Wednesday for control of Sievierodonetsk, whose residential areas Moscow claims to have “liberated”, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky praises the “heroic” defense of this key city in Donbass.
Posted at 7:13 a.m.
Updated at 10:51 p.m.
The Russians claim to have “completely liberated” the residential areas of this strategic city for control of the entire Donbass coalfield in eastern Ukraine. “The takeover of its industrial zone and neighboring localities continues,” said Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu in a rare televised briefing on Tuesday.
An inventory contested by Kyiv. “They do not control the city,” replied a few hours later in a video message on Telegram Serguiï Gaïdaï, the governor of the Luhansk region, which, with that of Donetsk, forms the Donbass.
However, he acknowledged that “it is very difficult to hold Sievierodonetsk”, even speaking of “mission impossible”.
“All the forces, all the reserves have been mobilized by the enemy, the Russian army, to cut off the main Lysytchansk-Bakhmut road in order to take Sievierodonetsk. They are shelling Lysychansk very violently,” the governor said.
“Vital need for weapons”
The towns of Sievierodonetsk and Lyssytchansk, separated by a river, constitute the last agglomeration still under Ukrainian control in the Luhansk region. Their capture would open the road to Kramatorsk, a large city in the Donetsk region, to the Russians.
Photo ARIS MESSINIS, Agence France-Presse
A destroyed building in Lysychansk
For his part, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky assured in his daily video address on Tuesday evening that “the situation on the front has not changed significantly in the past 24 hours” and that “the absolutely heroic defense of Donbass continues”.
For this, however, Ukrainian soldiers have “a vital need for heavy weapons that can counter enemy artillery”, asked Mr. Gaïdaï, claiming “Western artillery”.
Kyiv is already claiming to have inflicted a heavy toll on its invader. “More than 31,000 Russian soldiers have died in Ukraine,” Zelensky said Tuesday evening. “Since February 24, Russia has been paying for this completely senseless war almost 300 lives of its soldiers every day. But there will be a day when even for Russia the number of casualties will become unacceptable.”
No record is verifiable. However, the death of a Russian general, Roman Kutuzov, was confirmed on Tuesday by the leader of the pro-Russian separatists Denis Pushilin. Several Russian generals have lost their lives since February, but Moscow rarely communicates on its losses.
Tuesday evening, Mr. Zelensky also announced the publication next week of a “Book of executioners”.
The book will compile data on war crimes and Russian soldiers accused of committing them. Mr. Zelensky promises that the people who gave the orders will also be cited. “I have repeatedly stressed that they will all be held accountable. And we are moving there step by step,” the Ukrainian president said. “Everyone will be brought to justice,” he further promised.
At the end of May, the Ukrainian justice system claimed to have identified “a few thousand” cases of alleged war crimes in the Donbass.