Russian Armed Forces' Units Take Full Control of Regional Centre of Kherson - MoD

On 24 February, Russia began a special military operation in Ukraine to demilitarise and "de-Nazify" the country. The Russian Defence Ministry said the special operation, which came after the Donbass republics requested help, is only targeting Ukrainian military infrastructure and the civilian population is not in danger.

Russia's Defence Ministry said on Wednesday that Russian military units have taken full control of the Ukrainian regional centre of Kherson.

Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said that Kherson's infrastructure, support facilities, and urban transport are operating on a daily basis.

"The city does not face shortages of food and essential goods. Negotiations between the Russian command, the administration of the city, and the region are under way to address issues of maintaining the functioning of social infrastructure facilities, ensuring law and order, as well as the safety of the population", Konashenkov stressed.

He also said that forces from the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics (DPR and LPR) are continuing their successful offensive on the Ukrainian Army.

"LPR forces, with fire support from the Russian armed forces, are continuing successful offensive operations as they have seized control over the settlements of Starobelsk and Svatovo. Since the start of [Russia's] special military operation, the depth of advance has been 75 kilometres", Konashenkov noted.

According to him, DPR forces have also expanded their offensive zone, establishing control over the settlements of Kalinovka, Lebedinskoye, Pionerskoye, Nikolayevka, and Osipenko. "Since the start of the operation, DPR forces have advanced by 58 kilometres", the Russian Defence Ministry spokesman pointed out.

He added that the Russian military is now taking control of the settlements of Tokmak and Vasilyevka, where Ukrainian Army servicemen earlier gave up resistance and voluntarily laid down their arms.

"After they sign pledges obliging them to refuse to participate in hostilities, these Ukrainian servicemen will return to their families", Konashenkov said.

Russia-Ukraine Talks

The remarks come a few days after Russian and Ukrainian officials wrapped up the first round of talks in Belarus, aimed at resolving the crisis between Moscow and Kiev.

Vladimir Medinsky, special assistant to President Vladimir Putin and head of the Russian delegation, told reporters late last week that the sides had "found some common points on which we predict common positions can be found". He added the sides had agreed on the second round of negotiations, which are expected to take place in the coming days in Belarus.

On 24 February, Russia began a special operation to demilitarise and "de-Nazify" Ukraine, responding to calls for help from the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics in countering intensifying attacks by the Ukrainian Army. Russia's Defence Ministry has repeatedly stressed that its forces have not launched any strikes on Ukrainian cities, only targeting the country's military infrastructure with high-precision weapons.

This was followed by the US, the UK, as well as EU members and several other countries slapping packages of sanctions on Russia, which included closing their airspace to all Russian flights and sanctioning a number of Russian banks and officials. Additionally, the German government announced that all Russian banks already subjected to Western sanctions will be excluded from the SWIFT payment system.

Russia responded by closing its airspace to air carriers from 36 countries, including Germany, Spain, and France, with President Putin signing a decree "On the application of special economic measures" against the US and its allies.