Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has traveled to Izyum, one of many largest cities lately retaken from Russia in a lightning counteroffensive within the japanese a part of the nation.
The Ukrainian army in an announcement on social media stated Zelenskiy and army officers “took half” in a ceremony elevating the Ukrainian flag over the liberated metropolis, which was key for Russia’s ambitions to seize the Donbas area.
Photographs confirmed Zelenskiy greeting Ukrainian troopers taking part within the quickly advancing counteroffensive.
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Zelenskiy stated in his nightly handle on September 13 that Ukraine was in full management of greater than 4,000 sq. kilometers of territory recaptured from Russian forces and stabilizing one other 4,000 sq. kilometers.
“We’re transferring solely in a single course — ahead and till victory,” he stated in a submit on social media after his go to.
The Ukrainian army has pushed Russian forces out of lots of of cities and cities within the northeast of the nation, and Zelenskiy stated the stabilization of the liberated communities was beneath approach.
However regardless of the current sizeable positive aspects of the Ukrainian forces, U.S. President Joe Biden on September 13 predicted “a protracted haul” forward.
Biden, requested whether or not Ukraine had reached a turning level within the six-month conflict, stated it was onerous to inform.
“It is clear the Ukrainians have made important progress. However I feel it will be a protracted haul,” Biden stated.
In Strasbourg, European Fee chief Ursula von der Leyen stated she would journey to Kyiv afterward September 14, her third go to for the reason that begin of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February.
Von der Leyen, who introduced the go to within the presence of Ukrainian first woman Olena Zelenska and wearing blue and yellow, the colours of Ukraine’s flag, stated she and Zelenskiy would focus on Kyiv’s integration into the European Union’s single market.
Earlier on September 14, Ukraine stated it had for the primary time encountered an Iranian-made suicide drone utilized by Russia on the battlefield.
The Ukrainian army’s Strategic Communications Directorate revealed what it stated had been photographs of the wreckage of what gave the impression to be a delta-shaped drone flown by Iran generally known as the Shahed-136, or “Witness” in Persian.
Ukrainian troops encountered the drone close to Kupyansk amid Kyiv’s offensive that has punched by Russian strains round Kharkiv on the japanese entrance, the Ukrainian army stated.
The Shahed drone appeared to have been shot down by Ukrainian forces and hadn’t detonated on impression as designed, although little different info was instantly launched by Kyiv.
An inscription on the drone recognized it as an “M214 Gran-2,” which did not instantly correspond to identified Russian army tools.
Iran’s mission to the United Nations didn’t reply to a request for remark. Russia didn’t acknowledge the Ukrainian declare.
The British Ministry of Protection, in an intelligence replace on September 14, equally famous the Ukrainian shootdown declare, saying, “Russia has extremely doubtless deployed Iranian uncrewed aerial autos…in Ukraine for the primary time.”
“The lack of a Shahed-136 close to the entrance strains suggests there’s a sensible risk that Russia is trying to make use of the system to conduct tactical strikes quite than towards more-strategic targets farther into Ukrainian territory,” British intelligence stated.
In July, U.S. intelligence publicly warned that Iran deliberate to ship lots of of bomb-carrying drones to Russia to be used in its conflict on Ukraine.
Iran initially denied the accusation however the head of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps has boasted in current days about arming the world’s high powers.
The White Home, which has supplied billions of {dollars} of weapons and help to Ukraine, has stated america is prone to announce a brand new army support bundle within the “coming days.”
Although the current territorial shifts marked certainly one of Russia’s greatest setbacks since its troops had been repelled from Kyiv within the early days of the conflict, Moscow signaled it was no nearer to agreeing to a negotiated peace, and the Kremlin insisted it will obtain its army objectives.
Russia stated it was finishing up strikes throughout the Ukrainian entrance line and accused Ukrainian troopers of abusing civilians within the recaptured territories.
“Air, rocket, and artillery forces are finishing up large strikes on models of the Ukrainian armed forces in all operational instructions,” the Russian Protection Ministry stated in its every day briefing on the battle.
“Excessive-precision” strikes have additionally been launched on Ukrainian positions round Slovyansk and Kostyantynivka within the japanese Donetsk area, it added.
In a telephone name on September 13, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz urged Russian President Vladimir Putin to discover a diplomatic resolution for the battle primarily based on a cease-fire and the whole withdrawal of Russian troops, a spokesman for the chancellor’s workplace stated.
