The Kherson region in southern Ukraine will be “definitively liberated” from Russian forces by September, a local official said on Sunday.
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“We can say that the Kherson region will be definitely liberated by September, and all the plans of the occupiers will fail,” said adviser to the head of the Kherson regional military administration loyal to Kyiv, Sergiy Khlan, in a statement. interview on Ukrainian television.
The Ukrainian army has begun in recent weeks to regain ground in the Kherson region, in the south of the country, helped by Western arms deliveries.
“We can talk about a turnaround on the pitch. In recent operations, it was the Ukrainian armed forces that had the advantage,” Mr. Khlan added. “Our army is advancing frankly, we are moving from a defensive phase to a counter-offensive.”
The Russians took control of the region’s main city, Kherson, on March 3. It was then the first major city to yield to Moscow’s offensive since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in late February.
Essential for Ukrainian agriculture, the region borders the Crimean peninsula, annexed by Moscow in 2014.