'Forward and towards victory:' Zelenskyy hails Ukrainian forces on surprise visit to liberated city
14 September 2022, 18:09
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky made a surprise visit to the recently liberated town of Izyum today, and was unmoved when a bomb exploded nearby as he spoke to local troops.
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Taking part in an emotional flag-raising ceremony over the town of Izyum, Zelenskyy said: "Our blue-yellow flag is already flying in de-occupied Izyum. And it will be so in every Ukrainian city and village.
"We are moving in only one direction – forwards and towards victory."
He said he did not know when, but that he believed Ukraine would eventually eradicate Russian forces from the country because "the truth is on our side".
This video published by Ukraine's State Border Guard Service shows the Ukrainian military in Vovchansk, a recently liberated city in Kharkiv Oblast less than 20 kilometers away from the Ukrainian-Russian border on Sept. 13. pic.twitter.com/h8yQAmtdOo
— The Kyiv Independent (@KyivIndependent) September 13, 2022
On Saturday, Ukrainian forces recaptured thousands of square miles of territory in the Kharkiv region after a lightning counter-attack against the Russian occupiers. This handed Kyiv some of the most strategically important towns and cities in the northeast of the country.
Within just a few days, Ukraine regained a region that took Russians months to capture.
This has handed Russia one of the biggest setbacks since the start of the war back in February.
President Zelenskyy said that the Ukrainian forces have now liberated 8,000 square km of territory so far this month. This is comparable to the land mass of Cyprus.
Whilst the recent events have given more hope to Ukraine, Russia still controls around a fifth of the country.
When asked about the progress, US President Joe Biden said the Ukrainian forces had made significant gains but still remained cautious as it would still be "a long haul".
Ukraine officials now say they will continue targeting towns in the eastern Donbas region, currently under Russian control.
Despite the set back, and having failed to take Ukraine, Moscow insisted that they would continue with the war "until all the goals that were originally set are achieved".
