Russia’s announcement it completed its retreat from Kherson is another setback for Putin, and a political win for Ukraine.
Ukrainian troops entered the southern city of Kherson, days after Russia announced its retreat from the regional capital it has occupied since close to the start of the war.
The Ukrainian military said Friday that Kherson was now back under Ukrainian government control. Earlier this week, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu had said all Russian troops would withdraw from the city of Kherson to the eastern side of the Dnieper River, territory that Russia still controls.
Ukrainian officials initially expressed some skepticism about a Russian retreat; they had recently worried that, though Russia had shown signs of a possible withdrawal, it might instead be a feint to lure Ukrainian forces into a costly urban battle. So the sentiment among Ukrainian leaders was basically: Ukraine will confirm a full-on Russian withdrawal when it sees it happen.
Early Friday morning, Moscow officials confirmed that its retreat was complete, saying no equipment was left behind. Ukrainian officials also confirmed it, though with far more jubilation. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy shared a video on his feed that showed people celebrating, captioned “Our Kherson.”
Moscow’s retreat from the city of Kherson represents a political and symbolic win for Ukraine — and another incredible defeat for Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“You’re withdrawing from the biggest prize that you took after the invasion. That is the only big city, that’s Kherson, the capital of the province, and you’re withdrawing from there,” said Rajan Menon, director of the Grand Strategy program at Defense Priorities. “So how this can be spun as an act of strategic genius, I don’t know.”
Russian troops seized the city of Kherson in the early days after Putin launched his war in Ukraine, and it was the only regional capital held by Russia. In late September, Putin announced he had annexed four regions of Ukraine, including Kherson, and incorporated them into the Russian Federation. Though the international community broadly condemned these as the illegal land grabs they were, Russia’s retreat from this regional capital also shows the hollowness of Putin’s territorial claims, and undercuts his propaganda about liberating parts of Ukraine.
