As part of the May counteroffensive in Kharkiv oblast, the Armed Forces of Ukraine have already liberated 23 settlements. Now Russian troops have stepped up shelling to deter this offensive.
This was announced at a briefing by Deputy Chief of the Main Operations Department of the General Staff Oleksiy Hromov.
"Since May 5, 23 settlements have been liberated in the Kharkiv direction by the actions of our troops," he said.
According to him, the Russians are currently trying to restrain the advance of Ukrainian troops to the border and have intensified shelling. In addition, Russian troops began shelling Sumy and Chernihiv more frequently to distract attention.