Our troops withdrew from Kreminna, they kept the defense for a month and a half — head of the Luhansk region

The main thing is not to win one battle, but to win the entire battle, the head of the Luhansk region is certain.

The guest is the head of the Luhansk Regional State Administration Serhiy Haidai.

Serhiy Haidai: Today our troops withdrew from Kreminna. The fact is that they kept the defense there for a month and a half. Every meter is shot by the enemy, it makes no sense to keep Kreminna. That would be tyranny, not heroism. They would just stand there, the orcs would not attack, but simply shoot them with mines and artillery. Therefore, a decision was made… Over the last three days, there was very heavy fighting, dozens of units of equipment came to the position.

Tetyana Troshchynska: Are there still residents?

Serhiy Haidai: If you take the whole community (Kreminna and all the settlements that are part of the OTG), there are about 3,000 people.

About the evacuation

Tetyana Troshchynska: But evacuation is impossible now, obviously?

Serhiy Haidai: It has stopped completely, because… Well, it is a known fact that this morning when people were leaving in their own vehicles, they were shot at. Unfortunately, 4 people were killed and one was injured. They tried to send an ambulance to that person, but when the ambulance was coming from the Donetsk region, it also came under fire. So now it is impossible to pass through there at all.

We carried out an evacuation every day because we understood that the Russians aimed to reach the borders of the Luhansk region, and they would not fight exclusively with the military. They will destroy everything, as they did in Mariupol. To just walk through this area.

 

• They do not need people or infrastructure. They need territory. In Kreminna they even covered the «Olympic» complex.

 

Today more than 100 people were deported from Lysychansk, Severodonetsk, Rubizhne and Popasna.

There are no safe places in the Luhansk region, the whole territory of the region is under fire. According to our estimates, 20%, ie. up to approximately 70,000 people, now remain in all of the communities of the Luhansk region.

 

• We cannot forcibly remove people from shelters and send them for evacuation. We did everything to 99%, we took everyone who wanted to leave.

 

But we have regrettable examples.

People were leaving slowly

The first example is in Rubizhne. When the evacuation was announced, the railway station was working. And people could safely get into cars and go to the west of Ukraine. There they quietly received free housing, food, and medical care. Or, if they wanted to, they could go further abroad if they had the proper documents. Which is what some people did, those who wanted to.

When the railway was cut, we could no longer deliver people by trains, but we sent them on buses.

And then, when the Russians came to Rubizhne, we… And now we can take a small number of people out, but it is only about 15-20 people at a time. The rest simply cannot physically escape because they are under fire. There is constant fighting.

• And some, whose apartments are more attractive, the Russians are forcibly deporting them to the middle of the occupied territory.

The second case is Kreminna. We have been giving people this information lately because Kreminna has been shelled, even in the city center.

We told everyone, «Go, there are a few days left.» Still, people were leaving slowly. By the 100s to 150s to 200s.

Today we agreed to take 90 people out in the morning. But overnight everything changed, and there was nothing we could do today.

«I believe in the Armed Forces»

Tetyana Troshchynska: Mr. Serhiy, many great experts talk about the «great offensive,» and you are a person who sees it all. Is there a big offensive?

Serhiy Haidai: I think there already is this type of offensive… They have already started implementing their plan. However… It will not be like wall to wall, it will consist of a big picture of puzzles, of the shelling of certain areas.

Tetyana Troshchynska: Have they already formed a large group?

Serhiy Haidai: Yes, there are hundreds of units of heavy equipment. A lot. Planes are constantly flying over them, our settlements are being shot at with rockets and bombs… Planes, we have counted about 6 of them, are constantly working… And as for the number of people in the groups — there are about 10,000.

We will definitely win. Just as there is a map with puzzles on the offensive, so there is a map of victory. It consists of puzzles. I am confident and believe in the Armed Forces. I personally know and trust Commander-in-Chief Zaluzhny. They see the whole picture from above and clearly understand how to place people, reinforcements and equipment.

Even if we leave some of our positions, if we leave certain territories, it will all be a step towards one of our great victories.

The main thing is not to win one fight. The main thing is to win the whole battle.

Also read: How to act to the head and employees of local governments during the occupation: advice from a lawyer

On the morning of April 18, the head of the OVA announced that Russian troops had entered Kreminna and fighting was continuing in the city, and later that the occupiers had taken control of Kreminna and that evacuation from the city was impossible.

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