Western military believes Ukraine can liberate Kherson next week – FT

Western military officials assume Ukraine can liberate Kherson from the russian invaders as early as next week, the Financial Times reports.

"Ukrainian forces broke through Russian front lines in Kherson at the beginning of the month, Russia's defense ministry acknowledged at the time, marking Ukraine's biggest advance in the south since Moscow's full-scale invasion began in February. Since then, Kyiv has recaptured significant territory west of the Dnipro.

Ukraine's Southern Operational Command on Thursday said it had liberated five more settlements in the Kherson region from Russian control and had destroyed a Russian command and control center and two towed howitzers," the article says.

The publication doesn't indicate which sources and whose estimates it relies on.

According to the FT, statements by Kremlin protege Volodymyr Saldo and his henchman Kirill Stremousov about the need to evacuate families from the Kherson region indicate the precariousness of the situation.

The publication also quotes Stanislav Belkovsky, a former Kremlin expert who became a critic of Vladimir Putin. He wrote in Telegram that russia was "preparing for a decisive battle" for Kherson.

The russian federation is preparing for a decisive battle for the city of Kherson. And before that, it plans to evacuate a large part of the residents of the Kherson region. "Apparently, the Kremlin and military commanders do not overestimate the chances of retaining Russian control over this annexed region," said Belkovsky.