The blue and yellow flag is flying again: Ukrainian President Zelenskyj paid a visit to the troops shortly after the recapture of Izyum in the east of the country. He announced that the Ukrainian armies would continue to advance.
Shortly after the withdrawal of Russian troops, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy traveled to the liberated part of eastern Ukraine. “Our blue and yellow (flag) is flying over the liberated Izyum,” the head of state announced today on social networks. Selenskyj announced a further advance of the Ukrainian army. “We are only moving in one direction – forward and to victory,” emphasized the 44-year-old.
Photos showed Zelenskyy in Izyum in the Kharkiv region with soldiers of the Ukrainian army. The President of Ukraine shook hands and posed for pictures with soldiers. Commenting on Zelenskyy’s surprise visit, Ukraine’s Defense Ministry wrote: “The engines of the Russian tanks that were left behind are still warm, but President Zelenskyy is already there to express his support for the troops.”
Izyum was only recaptured last week as part of a Ukrainian counter-offensive. The important transport hub is considered the gateway to the industrial district of Donbass and had over 40,000 inhabitants before the war.
According to Ukraine, its counter-offensive has been very successful in the north-eastern region of Kharkiv and on the southern front near Cherson on the Black Sea. According to this, Ukrainian troops have recaptured hundreds of villages and towns since the beginning of September. Moscow said the Russian troops had responded to Ukrainian territorial gains with “massive attacks” and inflicted losses on the Ukrainian military. The Ukrainian representative for the eastern Donetsk region confirmed Russian attacks along the entire front.
