Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday that Lyman, a key town of four Ukrainian regions annexed by Russia, had been "cleared" of Russian troops, reports AFP.
Ukraine ran weeks-long counter-offensive against Moscow's invasion as Russia pushed forward with finalizing the annexation of captured Ukrainian territories despite huge condemnation from the West.
The recapture of Lyman marks the first Ukrainian military victory in a territory the Kremlin has claimed as its own and vowed to defend by all possible means.
Ukraine's army said it had entered Lyman, a strategic railway hub in the eastern Donetsk region, on Saturday, prompting Moscow to announce the "withdrawal" of its troops from the town towards "more favourable lines".
The recapture of Lyman had become the most popular story in the media, Zelensky noted in his Sunday evening address. "But the successes of our soldiers are not limited to Lyman," he added.
"Now I am optimistic and very motivated," a 33-year-old Ukrainian soldier using the nom de guerre "Smoke", told AFP after returning from near Lyman.
"I see the activity on the front line, and how foreign weapons... help us take our lands back."
Kyiv got a further boost Sunday when Berlin said Germany, Denmark and Norway would deliver 16 armoured howitzer artillery systems from 2023.
Bd-pratidin English/Lutful Hoque
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