He president of russia, Vladimir Putin, visited the security forces of the areas of Ukrainewhich Moscow claims to have annexed last year, as G7 foreign ministers meeting in Japan condemned Russia’s plan to deploy nuclear weapons in Belarus.
The Kremlin said that Putin moved to the regions of Kherson y Luhansk to attend a military command meeting in the first and visit a national guard barracks in the second. In Kherson, located in the south, the president heard reports from the commanders of the airborne forces and the Dnieper army group, as well as from other senior officers who provided information on the situation in the Kherson and Zaporizhia regions.
Kherson, Zaporizhia and Luhansk, are three of the four regions that Putin proclaimed annexation last September. Ukraine and its Western allies reject the annexations and the Russian military only partially retains the regions. Russian troops withdrew from the city of Kherson last November, and have been reinforcing their positions on the opposite bank of the Dnieper river in anticipation of a Ukrainian counteroffensive.
While numerous Western leaders have traveled to kyiv to meet with the Ukrainian president, Volodímir ZelenskiSince Russian forces invaded the country 14 months ago, Putin has rarely visited Russian-controlled areas of Ukraine. Last month he visited the Crimean region and the city of Mariupol, Reuters reported.
Russia claims that its “special military operation” in Ukraine was necessary to protect its security from what it sees as a hostile and aggressive West. Ukraine and its Western allies claim that Russia is waging an unprovoked war with the aim of grabbing territory.