The
Russia-Ukraine conflict entered a new dimension over the last few days as Kyiv’s
forces successfully pushed back against Moscow troops in large parts of
Ukraine. Initial reports showed Ukrainian troops recapturing vast swathes of
territory in the eastern Kharkiv region, marking the second-biggest pushback
from the Ukrainian side since they protected Kyiv. Now, Ukrainian government
sources say Russian troops are fleeing from the critical Luhansk region.

The Ukrainian
military released a statement on Sunday saying Russian forces had abandoned the
town of Svatove in Luhansk. “The occupiers have abandoned Svatove in Luhansk
region. They rushed in four Kamaz trucks, twenty Tigr AVs (armoured vehicles)
and stole over 20 cars of local residents,” the Ukrainian military staff
general’s office stated.

Svatove,
located in Luhansk, has served as a critical supply route for Russia to the
front lines further south, along the borders of Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

Ukrainian
officials also said that over 40 settlements in the Kharkiv region have been
liberated. “We can officially announce the liberation of more than 40
settlements. The situation is changing incredibly quickly and there are many,
many more such [de-occupied] settlements,” said Roman Semenukha, deputy head of
the Kharkiv region.

Also Read | East Ukraine goes dark as Kyiv pushes back against Kremlin

On the
other hand, several regions in Kharkiv lost power and water access after the
Russians retreated. In fact, water and power outages impacted regions in
Russian control as well. Nearly 9 million people lost access to water and
electricity for a while. The Ukrainian administration has accused Russia of
targeting civilian infrastructure that is leading to such outages.

Ukraine
President Vladimir Zelensky said: “A total blackout in the Kharkiv and Donetsk
regions, a partial one in Zaporizhzhia … No military facilities. The goal is to
deprive people of light and heat.”

Also Read | Russia-Ukraine conflict: Why fall of Izyum matters to Putin?

“There is
no electricity or water supply in several settlements. Emergency services are
working to control fires at the sites that were hit,” said Oleg Synegubov,
Kharkiv governor, on social media.