The Ukrainian forces took full control of the city of Kupyansk, in the northeast, expelling the Russian soldiers from their positions, on the eastern bank of the Oskill River, AFP journalists reported today.
A large part of this city – an important railway hub – was recaptured in early September, in the counter-offensive launched by Kyiv in the Kharkiv region. Nevertheless Russian forces still remained on the opposite bank of the river and continued skirmishing, while civilians tried to escape by crossing to the Ukrainian side of the city.
Earlier today (9/29), Ukrainian firefighters and volunteers carried a first load of humanitarian aid across an intact footbridge connecting the two banks of the river.
“It is the first distribution of humanitarian aid to the other side”, said the military commander of Kupyansk, Andrii Kanatsevich. 2,000 food rations, donated by the British government, were distributed.
Intermittent mortar explosions could be heard, but on the eastern bank Ukrainian tanks were deployed, among damaged trucks bearing the letter Z, the symbol of Russian forces.
Journalists saw five bodies wearing military uniform (probably Russian soldiers) near vehicles bearing Russian insignia.
In the Kupyansk-Vuzlovii industrial zone, five kilometers to the south, residents said the Russians had left on Tuesday.
Guterres: Annexation of parts of Ukraine to Russia will be a “dangerous escalation”
Meanwhile, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterreswarned today that if Russia went ahead with its plans to annex four Ukrainian regions, it would signal a “dangerous escalation” that would jeopardize prospects for peace in the region.
“Any decision to proceed with the annexation of the Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhia will have no legal value and deserves condemnation”Antonio Guterres told reporters.
Any such decision “it will prolong the dramatic effects on the global economy, especially in developing countries, and hinder our ability to provide life-saving assistance throughout Ukraine and beyond.”.
Source: News Beast
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