Russia-Ukraine war: Ukrainian forces recapture 500 square kilometers in southern territory

Ukrainian forces are in the midst of their counter-attack in the effort to recapture territories that Russian forces seized in the past six months of the war. The Ukrainian military said it was able to recapture 500 square kilometers of its southern territory in the latest gain.

The spokesperson for Ukraine’s southern military command said Monday that its troops were able to recapture around 500 square kilometers of territory in southern Ukraine in its major counteroffensive.

Spokesperson Natalia Humeniuk cited five settlements in Kherson that were recaptured by Ukrainian troops.

“On various sections, we have advanced by four and several tens of kilometers. We have liberated areas totaling 500 square kilometers,” Humeniuk told a news briefing via video.

On the same day, the White House also pledged continuing support for Ukraine as it advances in captured territories with weapons provided by the West. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters as President Joe Biden traveled to Boston that Ukrainian forces are working hard to recapture the seized territories.

“We’ll leave it to Ukraine to describe their operations but it is clear they are working hard to take back territory,” said Jean-Pierre. “We will continue to support Ukraine as they continue to defend their democracy against Russian aggression.”

Secretary of State Antony Blinken also said that Ukraine’s counteroffensive is still in its early days but added that its forces have made “significant progress.”

“What they have done is very methodically planned out and of course, it’s benefited from significant support from the United States and many other countries in terms of making sure Ukraine has in its hands the equipment it needs to prosecute this counteroffensive,” the top diplomat told reporters in a news conference in Mexico.

The United Kingdom said Sunday that Ukrainian forces made gains in the Kharkiv region in a span of 24 hours. In the British defense ministry’s intelligence bulletin on Twitter, the ministry said Russia has likely withdrawn its troops from the area as the fighting continues in the cities of Kupiansk and Izium.

The ministry also refuted Vladimir Putin’s claim that only 60,000 tons of Ukrainian grain that were exported in August were able to reach countries in need.

The ministry cited UN data of only 30 percent of Ukrainian grain was supplied to countries in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, adding that Moscow is pursuing a disinformation campaign to deflect the blame for global food insecurity issues.