Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov: “Donbass has unconditional priority”

According to Foreign Minister Lavrov, the capture of the Donbass in eastern Ukraine is the Russian war goal. He also commented on the state of health of his president. Ukraine, meanwhile, continued the offensive in the south.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has described taking Donbass in eastern Ukraine as an “unconditional priority”. It is about pushing the Ukrainian army and battalions out of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, which Moscow recognizes as independent states, Lavrov said in an interview with the French broadcaster TF1, according to the Russian foreign ministry.

The ministry published the answers on the website. In the interview, Lavrov again spoke of an alleged “liberation” of the Donbass from the “Kiev regime”.

“No sign of sickness or infirmity”

He also responded to a question about Putin’s health. The President, who turns 70 in October, appears in public every day, the Foreign Minister said. “You can watch him on the screens, read and hear his performances. I don’t think sensible people would see any sign of any kind of disease or infirmity in this individual.” Putin’s health and personal life are taboo subjects in Russia and almost never discussed in public.

Ukraine assumes a major Russian offensive in Sloviansk

Meanwhile, heavy fighting continues in eastern Ukraine. According to Ukrainian information, Russian forces are preparing a large-scale attack on the Sloviansk area, the center of the Ukrainian defense forces in Donbass. Russian troops deployed new units to the area to attack Sloviansk from both Izyum and the recently captured small town of Lyman, the Ukrainian General Staff situation report said.

The Sloviansk-Kramatorsk region is the largest metropolitan area in the Donbass still under Kiev control. The high command of the armed forces in the east of the country is also stationed here. “In the Sloviansk area, the enemy units have regrouped their forces in order to renew the offensive in the Izyum – Barvenkove and Izyum – Sloviansk directions,” the General Staff said. In preparation, 250 military vehicles were moved to the Izyum area and a railway bridge in the area was also repaired to speed up supplies.

A squadron of Ka-52 attack helicopters was also stationed north of Izyum. The Ka-52 is considered to be the most modern heavy attack helicopter in Russia. In addition, the Russian troops are in the process of repositioning themselves in Lyman, north-east of Sloviansk.

Sieverodonetsk still contested

In addition to Sloviansk, the Sievjerodonetsk – Lyssychansk area remains the focus of Russian attack efforts in the Donbass. Bitter fighting broke out around the city of Sievjerodonetsk after it was stormed by Russian troops. Ukrainian forces engaged in hand-to-hand combat with the assault troops, regional authorities said. Two civilians were killed as Russian troops advanced into the outskirts.

Russian troops have advanced to the south-east and north-east of the embattled city and are attacking with heavy weapons and air support, regional authorities said. The power supply had failed due to the fighting, and the mobile network was also down. A humanitarian aid center was also closed due to the dangerous situation.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi previously described the situation in Sievjerodonetsk as indescribably difficult. Constant Russian shelling destroyed important infrastructure and 90 percent of the buildings. A capture of Sievjerodonetsk has become the main task for the Russian occupying forces, Zelenskyj said. They didn’t care about victims.

Increased attacks also in Lysychansk

According to Ukrainian sources, Russian troops also stepped up their attacks on nearby Lysychansk, which was under constant fire. A number of civilians managed to escape from the city. Lysychansk and Sievjerodonetsk span the strategically important Siverskyi Donets River and are the last major areas in the Luhansk region still under Ukrainian control. Luhansk and the neighboring Donetsk region form the Donbass industrial zone.

Russian airstrikes were also reported from other regions of Ukraine. The Ukrainian army reported heavy fighting in the area around the provincial capital Donetsk and around Lyman in the north. The Russian military announced on Saturday that it had taken the important Lyman railway junction, but Ukrainian authorities said fighting continued in parts of the city. “The enemy is strengthening its units,” said the Ukrainian general staff in a situation report. “He’s trying to gain a foothold in the area.”

Ukraine continues offensive in the south

According to their own statements, the Ukrainian military continued its offensive in the south of the country. “The situation in the south is dynamic and tense,” said the high command of the Ukrainian military district South on its Facebook page. Russia is assembling reserves and trying to fortify the front lines in the Kherson region. “At the same time, our units continue their offensive activities to tie down the enemy and prevent regrouping of reserves.”

The Russian army was pushed back near the three villages of Andriyivka, Losowe and Bilohirka. “Kherson, stand firm, we are close,” the general staff wrote on Facebook. The Russian troops are building defense lines around Cherson. According to Ukrainian sources, the Russian army also sent special units to neighboring Mykolaiv “to recapture lost positions”. Initially, there was no information from the Russian side.

According to their own statements, the Ukrainian military killed 67 Russian soldiers and disabled 27 military vehicles in the fighting. This information cannot be verified independently. Kyiv also launched the attacks in the south of the country at the weekend as a counter-offensive to the Russian advance in the Donbass. Greater Kherson is the only region of Ukraine that has been controlled by Russian troops since the beginning of the war.

Selenskyj accuses Russia of a war of annihilation

Selenskyj accused Russia of a war of annihilation. After visiting the front in Kharkiv, he spoke of serious damage in the north-eastern city and of destruction in Donbass. “Black, burned-out, half-ruined apartment buildings look east and north with their windows – to where the Russian artillery fired from,” Zelenskyy said in a video message.

But Russia not only lost the battle for Kharkiv, but also for Kyiv and northern Ukraine. “It has lost its own future and any cultural ties to the free world.”

The trip to Kharkiv was Zelensky’s first known visit to the front since the beginning of the Russian war of aggression. During the visit, he fired the local head of the SBU, Zelenskyy said: “Because he hasn’t worked to protect the city since the first days of the war, he only thought about himself.” The case was handed over to the judiciary.