Russia denies offensive in Ukraine’s Kharkiv failing as areas locked down
Al Jazeera
The governor of Russia’s Belgorod region said several areas would be closed to most civilians.
Russia has denied its ground offensive on Ukraine’s northeastern Kharkiv region is failing after an official said he would seal off border villages to shield them from Ukrainian shelling.
Belgorod’s regional governor, Vyacheslav Gladkov, said on Tuesday that civilian access to 14 Russian border villages would be restricted given the ongoing intensity of the attacks.
Asked if this meant that the Kharkiv operation had failed, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday: “No, it doesn’t.”
“This operation is ongoing, it will continue until it has been successfully completed,” he told reporters.
“But while it has not been completed, barbaric attacks by the Kyiv regime on civilian infrastructure continue. In order to take the necessary measures to ensure the safety of the population, new practices are being introduced,” he said.
