On Tuesday, the Kremlin announced that President Vladimir Putin had visited two frontline locations in Ukraine, provoking a harsh criticism from Kyiv, which claimed he was witnessing “the crimes of his minions.”
The Kremlin did not explain when Putin went to the southern region of Kherson and the eastern area of Lugansk, which he claimed to have seized last September but did not fully control.
The Kremlin chief dispatched troops to Ukraine in February 2022, sparking Europe’s worst battle since World War II.
Ukrainian army have stated that they are preparing for a spring onslaught.
An advisor to President Volodymyr Zelensky, Mykhailo Podolyak, characterized Putin’s visit as “a’special tour’ of the mass murders author… to enjoy the crimes of his minions for the last time.”
Following the announcement of Putin’s arrival on Tuesday, Ukrainian officials stated that Russian forces shelled Kherson’s central market area, injuring six persons.
Russia was forced back in the northern and southern regions last year, and Moscow’s forces have only achieved gradual gains in eastern Ukraine.
Much of the combat has now centered on the eastern town of Bakhmut, which has become the conflict’s longest and bloodiest engagement.
During his visit to Ukraine, Putin met with Russian military commanders and discussed the situation on various fronts in the pro-Western country, according to the Kremlin.
The Kremlin published video footage of Putin disembarking from a helicopter while visiting the headquarters of the Dnieper army group in the Kherson region.
He also paid a visit to the national guard headquarters in Lugansk, Ukraine’s easternmost city.
“It’s important for me to hear your opinion on the situation, to listen to you and to exchange information,” Putin said in the video, surrounded by senior military commanders.
The Russian president wished the troops a good Easter, which Orthodox Christians celebrated last Sunday, and presented them with copies of historic icons, according to the Kremlin.
His visits to Kherson and Lugansk occurred after the Kremlin announced in March that Putin had made a surprise visit to Mariupol, the port city that Moscow conquered after a long siege last spring.
