Earlier, Shoigu reported to the president about taking control of the entire territory of the Luhansk People's Republic
The units of the Russian Armed Forces that took part in the storming of Lisichansk should rest and restore combat capabilities, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a meeting with Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. The day before, the minister informed Putin that the entire territory of the republic had come under the control of the LPR - after the capture of Lisichansk and a number of other settlements. At the same time, Kiev claims that the abandonment of Lisichansk by the Armed Forces of Ukraine is a successful operation, and the retreat was carried out to save the military.
The units of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation that took part in the battles in the Luhansk region should rest and restore their combat capability. Russian President Vladimir Putin said this at a meeting with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, RIA Novosti reports.
Putin said that other military formations, including the "East" and "West" groups, should carry out their tasks "according to a previously approved plan, according to a single plan." He also expressed the hope that everything will happen in their directions "in the same way as it has been happening in Lugansk up to now."
On the eve of July 3, the head of the Defense Ministry Shoigu reported to Putin about taking control of the entire territory of the Luhansk People's Republic (LNR). The city of Lisichansk and the surrounding settlements were also taken - the last ones that were occupied by Ukrainian troops in the LPR.
Among them are the city of Novodruzhesk, the villages of Belogorovka and Maloryazantsevo, as well as the village of Belaya Gora. The total area of the territories occupied by the LPR is 182 square kilometers, Shoigu said.
The deputy chairman of the Security Council, ex-President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev also appreciated the significance of the capture of Lisichansk in his Telegram channel.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the LPR Vladislav Deinego said that the forces of the People's Militia of the LPR continue to advance on Seversk in the DPR.
He added that the LPR units are also fighting in the neighboring Kharkiv region.
"Successful operation"
Kiev believes that the Ukrainian troops left Lisichansk in order to save the lives of their servicemen against the background of the numerical superiority of Russia and the LPR. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine stated that the Ukrainian military left the city "forcibly", based on the balance of forces with Russia.
The Ukrainian command claims that the Russian troops have a multiple superiority in the number of artillery, aviation, multiple launch rocket systems and in the number of personnel.
"Continued defense of the city would lead to fatal consequences. For the sake of preserving the lives of Ukrainian defenders, it was decided to leave," the AFU General Staff said in a statement.
At the same time, the President of Ukraine, Vladimir Zelensky, noted the day before that fighting was still going on in the vicinity of Lisichansk, so "it is not yet possible to talk about taking Lisichansk under the control of Russian forces."
The Ukrainian president also noted that the Ukrainian Armed Forces retreated from Lisichansk to save the lives of the military. At the same time, Zelensky promised that the Ukrainian army would return to the city.
"We are saving the lives of soldiers, our people. We will rebuild the walls, we will win back the land, and people need to be protected most of all. And if the command of our army takes people from certain points of the front, where the enemy has the greatest fire advantage, in particular, this applies to Lisichansk, it means only one thing - that we will return thanks to our tactics, increasing the supply of modern weapons," the Ukrainian head added.
Zelensky stressed that Ukraine "does not give anything away."
Advisor to the head of the office of the President of Ukraine Alexey Arestovich believes that the surrender of Lisichansk and Severodonetsk is a successful operation of the Ukrainian military.
According to him, the situation in the Luhansk region made it possible to create conditions for offensive actions by Ukraine in other sectors of the front, causing losses to the Russian army, and helped to gain time for the supply of weapons from Western countries.
The head of the Luhansk OVA, Sergei Gaidai, said that the Ukrainian military allegedly left Lisichansk "without losses." According to him, while some units of the Ukrainian troops were holding the defense in Lisichansk, others were building new fortifications in the Donetsk region. He added that about 90% of the population has left the city, but more than 10 thousand civilians remain there. 90% of the infrastructure is damaged, there is no water and gas, electricity problems, and two-thirds of residential buildings cannot be restored, the Ukrainian official said.
"We decided to withdraw to ready-made fortified positions further to the west, occupy them and from there continue the fight against the Russian army," Gaidai said. He added that the loss of Lisichansk is just one battle lost by the AFU, "but not a lost war."
Ivan Zhukovsky
