About two-thirds of Russian troops stationed around Kyiv have already left the region and are in Belarus. This was announced by a senior official of the US Department of Defense, CNN reports.
According to the official, the troops that left the territory around Kyiv are “heading north” and moving to Belarus. He said the United States believes the troops will be reorganized, equipped, possibly even reinforced, and then sent back to Ukraine to continue hostilities elsewhere.
The United States believes that these troops “will be used in the eastern part of the country, in the Donbass region.” He added that fierce fighting for Mariupol continues, but “there are no signs that the Russians have achieved any success” in capturing the city. According to the Pentagon, Russian forces are now “much more engaged in defense” around Kherson.
“Currently, the Russians seem to be sandwiched between Kherson and Mykolayiv. However, Russian troops are now defending around Kherson, not advancing,” the official added.