Vladimir Putin reportedly says “most dangerous actions” happening in Kherson as he calls for people to leaveVladimir Putin said on Friday that civilians in the Ukrainian region of Kherson must be removed from the conflict zone, state-owned news agency RIA reported.
Russia illegally annexed the region from Ukraine in September and Ukrainian forces have since launched a counteroffensive to take back control.
Quoting a meeting Putin had with pro-Kremlin activists, RIA reports the Russian president said: “Now, of course, those who live in Kherson should be removed from the zone of the most dangerous actions, because the civilian population should not suffer”.
Russian-installed officials in Kherson region have pleaded for civilians to leave the region’s west, where Ukrainian forces have retaken ground in recent weeks.
On Thursday, Kherson’s Russian-appointed deputy governor Kirill Stremousov issued several video appeals for civilians to leave the part of the province on the west bank of the Dnipro river.
He said that Russian forces would likelygive up the west bank of the Dnipro to Ukraine.