Moscow confirms the explosion and rules out the possibility of negotiations

The Kremlin announced yesterday that Russia’s military intervention in Ukraine will continue until “the objectives are achieved,” while Russian troops have withdrawn from Kyiv-owned areas in the past few days. “The special operation will continue until the goals set at the beginning are achieved,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, who, on the other hand, believes that at the moment there is no “possibility of negotiations” between Moscow and Kyiv . And the Defense Ministry said at a daily press briefing that Russian air, missile and artillery forces are “delivering precise strikes against units and reserves of the Armed Forces of Ukraine,” including the cities of Kobyansk and Izyum. Over the past two days, Ukraine has said it has made great strides against Russian forces in the south and east, including over the cities of Izyum, Kubyansk and Balakleya. The Ukrainian army also confirmed that it had recaptured 500 square kilometers from Russian forces in the Kherson region in the country’s south in a two-week counteroffensive, the first official assessment of Ukrainian success. On Saturday, Russia announced that it was withdrawing its soldiers from the Kharkiv region as part of a decision to “regroup” its forces. For its part, the Ukrainian army yesterday confirmed that it had reclaimed 500 square kilometers from Russian forces in the Kherson region in the country’s south in a two-week counteroffensive, the first official assessment of Ukrainian success. “Our achievements over the past two weeks are convincing,” said Natalia Guminok, a spokeswoman for the army in southern Ukraine. We have cleared 500 square kilometers, especially in the cities of Vysokopylya, Belogorka, Sukhi, Stavok, Mirolyubovka.