Yahoo Autos Russians admit defeat in Kharkiv; Zelenskyy visits Izium after troops flee shattered city: Ukraine updates
A phalanx of military experts sweeping across Russian TV are admitting the Kremlin's defeat in Kharkiv region as Ukrainian forces on Wednesday pressed a counteroffensive that has driven occupying troops out of about 300 northeastern cities and towns.
"The Kremlin acknowledged its defeat in Kharkiv Oblast, the first time Moscow has openly recognized a defeat," the Institute for the Study of War said in its latest assessment of a war that began with Russia's Feb. 24 invasion.
Kremlin officials and state media propagandists on TV are extensively discussing the reasons for the Russian defeat in Kharkiv. Bogdan Bezpalko, a member of Russia's Council for Interethnic Relations, lamented the lack of military reconnaissance ahead of the counteroffensive, the Daily Beast reported.
"Of course, this is a tactical defeat," Bezpalko said. "I hope it will be very sobering.”
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Latest developments:
►Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy are each courting major allies Thursday, seeking to prop up their war efforts. Putin was hoping to further cement his ties with Chinese President Xi Jinping in an alliance seen as a potent counterweight to the West. The two were due to meet and discuss Ukraine in Uzbekistan, a Russian official said. Zelenskyy will meet with European Union chief Ursula von der Leyen.
►The southcentral city of Kryvyi Rih, Zelenskyy's hometown, was experiencing flooding after a series of Russian cruise missiles damaged a dam on the Inhulets River.
►German Chancellor Olaf Scholz spoke by phone with Putin but said, "Unfortunately, I cannot tell you that the realization has grown over there by now that this was a mistake to start this war."
►The Biden administration is expected to nominate Lynne Tracy, the current U.S. ambassador to Armenia and a veteran foreign service officer with years of experience in Russian affairs, as its next ambassador to Russia. Under the rules of diplomatic protocol, the Kremlin would have to approve the nomination.
►Concerns about Ukraine's recent successes in the war have prompted Russian authorities and security personnel in occupied Crimea to try to get their families back to Russia, the Institute for the Study of War said, citing Ukrainian intelligence reports.
►Oleksandr Shapoval, a standout ballet dancer and teacher who had volunteered to fight against the Russian invasion, was killed Monday on the battlefield, the National Opera of Ukraine said. He was 47.
Blame deflected from Putin
Previously, the Kremlin framed the retreat from Kyiv as a decision to prioritize the “liberation” of Donbas. The withdrawal from Snake Island was a “gesture of goodwill.”
Now, the Institute for the Study of War said the admission in Kharkiv is part of an effort to deflect criticism for such a devastating failure away from Russian President Vladimir Putin and onto defense officials.
"The Russian Ministry of Defense originally offered a similar explanation for the Russian failure in Kharkiv, claiming that Russian forces were withdrawing troops from Kharkiv Oblast to regroup," the institute's assessment says. "This false narrative faced quick and loud criticism online."
