Russian news agencies on Friday reported that the withdrawal from Kherson has been completed – a news that has brought cheers in the Ukraine and allied camps. The Russian defence ministry said all of its forces and equipment were transferred to the left, or eastern, bank of the Dnipro river.
The Ukrainian and allied camps claim that Russian forces retreated due to their counteroffensive but the Russians claim that they have removed forces to minimise their losses.
The defence ministry of Russia further claimed that their military hardware and personnel have not sustained any losses.
If Ukraine’s counteroffensive claims are to be believed this could be Russia’s worst setbacks since the beginning of its military operation. A report by the Telegraph said that Russian President Vladimir Putin has put the blame on his generals for the losses in Kherson.
The report also claimed that defence minister Sergey Shoigu is now one of the most ‘unpopular men in the Kremlin.’
Kherson was among the four regions that Russia annexed only a few weeks ago and the shifting of military personnel will upset Putin. Kherson chief Kirill Stremousov who was on stage with Putin during the annexation ceremony also died under mysterious circumstances on Wednesday.
The news of Russian military withdrawal was delivered on Russian news channels by General Sergei Surovikin aka ‘General Armageddon’. General Sergei Shoigu was in attendance as well. The Telegraph report said that Russian news channels did not hold elaborate discussions on the Kherson military withdrawal. The Russian President is yet to make a statement.
The Telegraph report also said that Russian forces were planning to abandon the region for a long time and on the south bank of Dnipro river there were makeshift defensive lines which are unlikely to withstand a major offensive.
However, the Russian withdrawal is unlikely to open doors for negotiations for peace. Several Western media outlets and commentators expressed their reservations and said this is not the time for negotiations as Ukraine has the advantage and if Russians can be pushed further, an attempt can be made for Crimea.
An editorial said the ‘less everyone on Ukraine’s side says about negotiations, publicly or privately, the better’ and urged the Biden administration to ‘lock in a major new aid package for Ukraine in the upcoming lame-duck session of Congress.’
(with inputs from the Telegraph and the Washington Post)
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