Thousands of Russian soldiers “flee” after Ukraine unexpectedly takes major cities

Thousands of Russian troops have retreated in the face of Ukraine’s lightning-fast counter-offensive in the north-east of the country.

For days, Ukrainian troops have been advancing through Kharkiv in a military operation that could be a turning point in the nearly seven-month-long war.

Russia’s defence ministry confirmed today its forces have retreated from Izyum, a key military stronghold, and Balakliya after Ukraine burst through its front line.

The ministry said Moscow decided to ‘regroup’ in Donetsk, within the Donbas region, in what it claimed was a pre-planned move.

Only six months ago, Russian troops seized control of Izyum after a weeks-long battle and planned only yesterday to beef up the city’s defence.

‘Izyum was liberated today,’ the city’s mayor, Valeriy Marchenko, told The New York Times.

It remains unknown, however, just how secure the win is or how long it will last.

The announcement came after Britain’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) said in a briefing Ukrainians burst through as much as 50 kilometres through Russia’s chokehold of Kharkiv.

‘Russian forces were likely taken by surprise. The sector was only lightly held and Ukrainian units have captured or surrounded several towns,’ the MoD said.

Defence officials added that this had left Russian forces around Izyum ‘increasingly isolated’ and would likely cut off their supplies.

Ukrainian troops have also captured Kupiansk, a major railway city that supplied Russian troops in the region.

The Security Service of Ukraine, known as the SBU, shared photographs of troops in front of the city’s council building on Telegram.

Personnel could be seen displaying the flag of the 92nd Separate Mechanised Battalion, a unit of the Ukrainian Ground Forces.

‘We will free our land to the last centimetre! We move further! Glory to Ukraine!’ the agency said.

And it wasn’t just Kupiansk – Ukraine’s Ministry of Defence tweeted: ‘The town of Balakliya, Kharkiv region, is liberated by Ukrainian troops!’

The ministry shared video footage of troops raising a Ukrainian flag in the town centre.

‘Balakliya is Ukraine! Today, the Ukrainian flag was raised,’ said the Kharkiv regional governor Oleg Sinegubov on Telegram.

‘Boys and girls of the armed forces, today you are creating a new history of free Ukraine, we are proud. To be continued…’

President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed yesterday Ukrainian forces had ‘liberated and taken control of more than 30 settlements’ in Kharkiv.

‘We are returning the Ukrainian flag and protection for our people everywhere,’ he said.

Across the last week, Ukraine has taken back at least 2,500 square kilometres of once pro-Kremlin Kharkiv, according to the US think-tank the Institute for the Study of War.

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