On Monday, Ukraine revealed that some Russian forces near Kherson in southern Ukraine are negotiating terms of surrender as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that his forces have “already liberated” about 6,000 kilometres (kms) of Russia-controlled areas in the country’s east and south this month.
Ukrainian military intelligence spokesman Andrey Yusov noted that Russian units are also surrendering in Kharkiv because “they understand the hopelessness of their situation.” Kharkiv Governor Oleh Syniehubov claimed that Ukrainian troops have even reached the Russian border in some areas.
FLASH TRAFFIC /KHERSON 1500/ UTC 12 SEP/ Breaking information from the UKR General Staff reports that RU units on the N bank of the Dnieper are presently negotiating the surrender of their positions and weapons. It is unknown if this a localized or a general capitulation. pic.twitter.com/TLrfiJHsDG
— Chuck Pfarrer | Indications & Warnings | (@ChuckPfarrer) September 12, 2022
Ukrainian presidential adviser Oleksiy Arestovich did not reveal the exact number of Russian prisoners of war but said that Ukraine does not have enough room to accommodate them. He also stated that the captured troops would be part of a prisoner exchange with Russia.
On Monday, Ukraine’s Operational Command South spokesperson, Nataliya Humeniuk, affirmed that some Russian units “are attempting to negotiate conditions of laying down arms under the norms of international humanitarian law.” She pointed out that the Russian forces are aware of the “astonishing” progress made by Ukrainian troops in Kharkiv, adding, “The degree of creaking resolve and demoralisation is so high, even the commanders now realise they don’t have anywhere to go.”
Spokesperson of Operation command "South": some Russian units at Kherson frontline negotiating surrendering their weapons https://t.co/D40oCLvH9n pic.twitter.com/klZTpyZ3Xl
— Liveuamap (@Liveuamap) September 12, 2022
Humeniuk revealed that the Russian commanders are willing to retreat to the Russian border or lay down arms because they are unable to safely cross the Dnipro river, noting that the Ukrainian forces had made considerable territorial gains in Russia-controlled territories in the south.
In another interview with Espresso Television channel on Monday, Humeniuk confirmed possible communication between Russian and Ukrainian forces in Kharkiv, claiming that Russian troops “are looking for ways to get in touch with our units in order to conduct so-called negotiations on the possibility of assembling weapons and transitioning under the auspices of international humanitarian law.”
Battle for Kherson
— Tomi T Ahonen Cheers Liberation of Izyum (@tomiahonen) September 12, 2022
(South of Ukraine)
So while Ukraine took Russian occupiers by surprise at Northernmost edge of the territory Russia held, near Kharkiv, the push to liberate Kherson continues in the South
And now we have multiple sources reporting Russian desire to surrender https://t.co/5qh6Z7bKki
Possible talks between the two forces regarding surrender were reported on Saturday after Ukraine’s Central Directorate for Intelligence (CDI) published a telephonic transcript of a Russian troop contacting a Ukrainian hotline in an effort to learn how to surrender to the Ukrainian armed forces.
However, despite reports of Russian troops giving up their positions, pro-Russian deputy Kherson chief Kirill Stremousov maintained that “everything is calm in Kherson and there is no panic.” Though he admitted that pro-Russian locals were “at a loss about the situation in the Kharkiv region,” he declared that “Kherson is and will be a Russian city. No one is going to surrender the city and, moreover, retreat.”
To quote the Bohun Brigade's press person:
— Samuel Ramani (@SamRamani2) September 11, 2022
“It was a big special disinformation operation”
Russia has been moving BTGs and military equipment to southern Ukraine for weeks now but left the Kharkiv front very exposed
Though the Russian Defence Ministry acknowledged the setback in Kharkiv and decided to “regroup” in Donetsk on Saturday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov emphasised that “the special military operation continues and will continue until all the goals that were initially set are achieved.” He also mentioned that Russian president Vladimir Putin is aware of the latest developments.
Meanwhile, the spokesperson for the Bohun Brigade of Ukraine’s special forces, Taras Berezovets, disclosed that last month’s much-anticipated southern counterattack was a “big special disinformation operation” to distract Russia from the assault in the north-eastern region of Kharkiv. “[Russia] thought it would be in the south and moved their equipment. Then, instead of the south, the offensive happened where they least expected, and this caused them to panic and flee,” he reasoned.
According to another source involved in the operation, a part of the mission was to discover Russian informants in Ukraine-controlled areas of Kharkiv in order to stop them from passing on information to Russian forces. “The Russians had no idea what was going on,” the source added.
Exclusive - Southern offensive announced almost two weeks ago was a disinformation campaign to trick the Russians and distract them from real offensive prep in Kharkiv - Ukraine special forces https://t.co/2vNZNFynWQ
— Isobel Koshiw (@IKoshiw) September 10, 2022
Following the latest Russian defeat, over 40 Russian lawmakers, mainly from Moscow and St. Petersburg, signed a petition demanding Putin’s resignation. Though it went unreported in Russian state media, it gave a rare insight into public perception of the war. That being said, many pro-Kremlin supporters have called for an increase in the “level of our combat capabilities within the special military operation.”
Konstantin Zatulin, a senior lawmaker from Putin’s United Russia party, acknowledged that the Russian troops’ retreat was doing “very serious damage to the very idea of this special military operation.” However, he said criticism of Putin should “not go overboard,” warning that it “could spark an uncontrollable reaction.”