Settlements Liberated In Southern Ukraine, Zelenskiy Says, As Russia Begins Retreat From Kherson

Ukrainian forces have liberated 41 settlements in the south of the country, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on November 10 but noted the "brutal struggle" and the "lives given for freedom for Ukrainians."

In his nightly address Zelenskiy said: "Today we have good news from the south. The number of Ukrainian flags returning to their rightful place within the framework of the ongoing defense operation is already dozens," he said, adding that 41 settlements have been liberated.

But he stressed that even as Ukrainians rejoice, they must remember that "every step by our defense forces represents...lives given for the freedom of Ukrainians. Everything that is happening now has been achieved by months of brutal struggle. It was achieved through courage, pain, and losses."

Zelenskiy spoke a day after the Russian defense minister announced the withdrawal of Russian troops from the west bank of the Dnieper River, the latest in a number of setbacks for Moscow on battlefields in Ukraine's east and southeast.

Zelenskiy did not specify the number of Ukrainian troops killed in the effort to reclaim the settlements, where he said stabilization measures have begun.

He noted the Russian troops left behind thousands of land mines and ammunition as they retreated from Kherson.

Presidential adviser Mykhaylo Podolyak said the land mines turned Kherson into a "city of death" and predicted they would shell it from occupied areas across the Dnieper River.

Vitaliy Kim, the regional military administration chief in the Mykolayiv region, said Ukrainian soldiers had already entered the outer suburbs of Kherson. He declined to give further details to avoid revealing the military's plans.

Russia said it began withdrawing troops on November 10 from Kherson city. The Ukrainian military's General Staff said the withdrawal was taking place slowly to allow the Russian forces to reinforce positions on the other bank of the Dnieper River.

Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov said it will take Russia at least a week to withdraw from the city of Kherson. He told Reuters Russia had 40,000 troops in Kherson region and it still had forces in the city, around the city, and on the west bank of the Dnieper River.

"It's not that easy to withdraw these troops from Kherson in one day or two days. As a minimum, [it will take] one week," he said.

Ukrainian Army chief Valeriy Zaluzhniy said earlier that Kyiv could not yet confirm whether Russia was indeed pulling out from the southern Kherson region but said Ukrainian forces were continuing their advance.

"We continue to conduct the offensive operation in line with our plan," he wrote in a post on Telegram.

Ukrainian officials said Moscow's forces had no choice but to flee Kherson, yet they remained cautious, fearing an ambush.

"The enemy had no other choice but to resort to fleeing," armed forces chief Zaluzhniy said, because Kyiv's army destroyed supply systems and disrupted Russia's local military command.

Kherson is strategically important, as it controls both the only land route to Ukraine's Russian-occupied Crimean Peninsula and the mouth of the Dnieper, which bisects Ukraine.

Recapturing the city could provide Ukraine a launching pad for supplies and troops to try to win back other lost territory in the south, including Crimea, which Moscow seized in 2014.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, who in late September celebrated the annexation of Kherson and three other Ukrainian regions and vowed to defend them by any means, has not commented on the withdrawal.

With reporting by AP, Reuters, and dpa