Russians not fleeing from Kherson, best-trained soldiers remain in place - Zelensky

27.10.2022 17:22

Ukrinform

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said he sees a statement by Russia about the transfer of its troops and evacuation from Kherson and the entire region as an information operation, as all best-trained enemy troops remain in place.

He said this in an interview with Italy's Corriere della Sera, Ukrinform reports.

"I don't see them [the Russians] running away from Kherson. This is an information attack, I can't disclose everything. This is an attack so that we go there, so that we transfer our troops there from other dangerous directions. It was their [Russian] information operation. They [the Russians] are not ready to leave Kherson. But they know that if we succeed, they won't be able to leave. The Russians are aware of this problem and danger," Zelensky said.

He also noted that not so many people left the right bank of the Dnipro River during the evacuation of civilians announced by Russia, calling such Russian actions and statements "theater."

According to him, best-trained Russian military personnel remain in place.

"We see this and we don't believe them [the Russians]," he said.

At the same time, Zelensky said he was convinced that Ukraine would be able to liberate Kherson, even though it is difficult to do so.

"It's difficult because the price is people. We treat people differently than Russia does. [Russia] doesn't find it important how many people will die tomorrow. But it is very important for us. We cannot do this... That is why we are thinking, looking for ways, asking our partners to give us more armored vehicles in order to save more people," he added.

Brigadier General Oleksii Hromov, deputy chief of the Main Operational Department of the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, earlier said he did not rule out that Russian troops during their evacuation from the Kherson region were capable of carrying out terrorist attacks there by detonating residential buildings.

Yaroslav Yanushevych, head of the Kherson regional military administration, asked the residents of the temporarily occupied region to ignore the calls of the Russian invaders for the so-called evacuation. According to him, the enemy wants to take residents of Kherson hostage and use them as a "human shield."