A Ukrainian victory in Kherson, one of the main targets of Kiev’s southern offensive, would be widely seen as a major blow to Russian President Vladimir Putin, just weeks after a high-profile ceremony in Moscow in which he announced the “forever” annexation of the Chersona region along with three other regions. In the latest humiliating defeat for Moscow, Shoigu and the commander-in-chief of Russian forces in Ukraine, Sergei Surovykin, ordered Russian troops to fall back to the river, destroying bridges on the west bank of the Dnipro River to cover their withdrawal. The retreat came as Ukrainian forces pressed their assault on Russian positions on the west side of the river, including the central town of Snihurivka, and as a key official stationed by the Russians in Kherson was reported dead in unclear circumstances. In televised remarks, General Sergei Surovikin, the war’s top commander, said he had recommended the withdrawal of Russian troops from the west bank of the Dnipro River, citing logistical difficulties. “Kherson cannot be fully powered and operational. Russia did everything possible to ensure the evacuation of the people of Kherson.” Surovikin said to Shoigu. “We will save the lives of our soldiers and the combat capability of our units. Keeping them on the right (west) bank is futile. Some of them can be used on other fronts,” Surovikin said. While the move was expected to prevent the encirclement of Russian forces from Ukraine on the west side of the river, Surovikin’s blunt admission that Russian forces could not operate effectively comes despite the Kremlin’s recent efforts to bolster the Kherson front at the cost of abandonment of large parts of eastern Ukraine. The withdrawal also marks a personal defeat for Surovikin, a notoriously hard-line air force officer who was appointed the first overall commander of Russian forces in Ukraine in October to reverse Russia’s failed war against Ukraine. The announcement came hours after it was revealed that Kirill Stremousov, the Russian-appointed deputy head of the Kherson region, had died in unclear circumstances with Russian media sources blaming a “car accident”. Stremusov – a former anti-vaccination blogger – had become the hated face of Russia’s occupation of Kherson, posting videos online, including a bizarre performance of poetry, and hosting press conferences for pro-Russian media. According to local media, the crash happened near Henichesk, on the Sea of Azov, the coastal city that has been used as the seat of the Russian occupation administration since it left Kherson. The Tass news agency reported that the regional chief’s press service confirmed Stremusov’s death. Alexander Dugin, a far-right nationalist in Russia whose daughter was killed earlier this year in a car bomb, said: “Kirill Stremusov, deputy head of the administration of the Kherson region, has died. A true hero. Kherson must be defended at all costs. Kherson is what keeps Russia in power today.” A local resident rides a bicycle near damaged houses in Arkhanhelske village, Kherson region. Photo: Reuters In recent weeks, Russia has been ferrying civilians away from Kherson as the Ukrainian threat to the occupied city looms ever closer, amid reports this week that some private ferries used by civilians to evacuate have also sunk. In the hours before the announcement of the Russian withdrawal, pro-Russian journalists and analysts had painted an increasingly bleak picture, with some predicting that Russia could abandon Kherson in its entirety. Before the announced withdrawal, Aleksandr Kots, a Kherson-based journalist for the pro-Kremlin tabloid Komsomolskaya Pravda, said there was “no good news” there, suggesting the withdrawal announcement could come soon. A Ukrainian soldier on the front line in the Kherson region, Ukraine, on Monday. Photo: Hannibal Hanschke/EPA “We are waiting for an official announcement,” he wrote on his Telegram channel. Koch also released several videos from Kherson that he said showed Russian flags being removed from government buildings. According to some accounts, the occupying administration in Kherson has moved well to the south of the city. Sergei Markov, a former Kremlin adviser and political commentator, said the decision to leave Kherson would have “disastrous consequences”. “In Russia, many fear that the decision to leave Kherson has already been made. It’s a wrong decision. It could have disastrous consequences for Russia.” Ukrainian officials have warned in recent days that claims that Russian forces were preparing to withdraw may be a ruse, suggesting that some Russian troops were masquerading as civilians. Victory in Kherson, one of the key targets of Kiev’s southern offensive, would be a devastating blow to Russian President Vladimir Putin, just weeks after a high-profile ceremony in Moscow in which he announced the annexation of Kherson region along with other three regions. The destruction of the bridges, however, indicated that the Russian forces were preparing to abandon the positions they occupied on the west side of the Dnieper River. Ukrainian officials and local residents said at least four bridges were blown up on Wednesday to slow the Ukrainian advance. Among them was the Dariivka Bridge, the only crossing of the Inhulets River in the Russian-held part of the west bank of the Kherson region. The Inhulets divide the occupied territory in two, with the city of Kherson in the western part and Beryslav in the east. Images posted on social media also showed that two bridges over the canal in Snihurivka had collapsed. Snihurivika was a key Russian position, anchoring its defenses outside Kherson.
