kraine has warned Russia his troops will be “destroyed” if they do not withdraw from the southern city of Kherson.
British officials on Thursday said Ukraine’s counteroffensive was “gaining momentum” and Russian forces were “extremely vulnerable” after Ukraine damaged several bridges over the Dnipro River with US-supplied missiles.
In an intelligence update, the Department of Defense said this meant the Russian-occupied city was “virtually cut off” from other areas of Russian occupation.
It said: “Russia’s 49th Army is stationed on the western bank of the Dnipro River and now looks very vulnerable.
Likewise, the city of Kherson, the most politically important population center occupied by Russia, is now virtually cut off from the other occupied territories.
“Losing it would seriously undermine Russia’s efforts to portray the occupation as a success.”
FILE: A car drives past a crater on Kherson’s Antonovsky Bridge over the Dnipro
/ AFP via Getty ImagesUkrainian forces again hit the main Antonivsky Bridge near the city of Kherson with long-range missiles on Wednesday, rendering it useless and rendering Russian efforts to capture the major city useless.
The defense ministry warned Russia to “withdraw or be destroyed”, adding “the choice is theirs”.
“Residents must learn to swim across the Dnipro River,” said Mikhailo Podolyak, adviser to President Volodymyr Zelensky.
“Or (they) should leave Kherson while it is still possible. There may not be a third warning.”
In a speech on Wednesday evening, President Zelensky said Ukraine would rebuild the Antonivsky Bridge over the Dnipro and other border crossings in the region.
“We are doing everything we can to ensure that the occupier does not get logistical opportunities in our country,” he said.
Russia captured Ukraine’s second-largest power plant in the eastern Donetsk region on Wednesday, but Ukrainian officials said it was only “a small tactical advantage”.
Oleksiy Arestovych, an adviser to Mr Zelensky, said Moscow appeared to be changing tactics and sending troops to the Melitopol and Zaporizhia and Kherson regions.
Oleksiy Danilov, secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, previously tweeted that Russia was concentrating “maximum number of troops” toward Kherson, but gave no details.
Meanwhile, Ukraine is preparing to resume grain exports after an agreement was signed last week to allow grain shipments to pass through Russia’s Black Sea blockade.
UN, Ukraine and Russia officials gathered in Istanbul on Wednesday to open a center to ensure the safe passage of 20 million tons of grain from Ukrainian ports.