Ukrainian defense forces stopped the movement of the occupiers in the south. But Russia still wants to destroy Mykolayiv, Zaporizhia and the cities of the Dnipropetrovsk region, they have enough capacity to shell Zelenodolsk and Gulyaipole. And Odesa remains a target for the Russian fleet.
The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, spoke about this in his address.
"Today is the 110th day of our defense. And when you say that - the 110th day - you realize what a great way we have come. The enemy was driven out of the Zhytomyr, Kyiv, Chernihiv, and Sumy regions. We managed to liberate a large part of Kharkiv region," the President said.
He added that multiple russian advances had been thwarted in the south, and a counterattack had already liberated some communities in the Kherson region.
The Ukrainian army and our intelligence are tactically outplaying the russian military in the battles in the Donbas, which will go down in military history as one of the most brutal battles in Europe and for Europe. This is despite the significant advantage of the russians in the quantity of equipment, especially in artillery systems.
"The price of this battle for us is very high. SIt is terrifying. And we draw the attention of our partners every day to the fact that only a sufficient amount of modern artillery for Ukraine will ensure our advantage and finally the to russian torment of the Ukrainian Donbas," Zelenskyy said.
The President said that it became known about the death of another child from the Russian shelling. A boy born in 2016 died in Lysychansk, Luhansk region.
"We are dealing with absolute evil. And we have no choice but to move on. Free our entire territory. Knock out the occupiers from all our areas. And although the width of our frontline is already more than 2.5 thousand kilometers, we still seem to possess the strategic initiative.
We will come to all our cities, to all our villages, which do not yet have our flag. Not on office buildings. Although there are a lot of Ukrainian flags there, I'm sure - just at people's, just at home. And we had already seen them when people protested against the occupiers. And we will see them again - we will see them everywhere when we return," Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized.
The President assured the Ukrainian army would come to Kherson, and ordinary Kherson residents would meet it on the city streets. The failure of the occupiers, who tried to celebrate the so-called Russia Day, only proves that Kherson is a Ukrainian city, and Kherson residents will celebrate only Ukrainian holidays.
Also, said Volodymyr Zelenskyy, we will come to Melitopol and return all Melitopol residents the opportunity to live without fear. And all the enemy collaborators who are now threatening to take away land from farmers in Melitopol and other parts of Zaporizhia will likely end up in this land themselves.
"We will come to Mariupol. And we will liberate the city for the third time. It was liberated from the Nazis in 1943 by a brilliant operation. In 2014, on June 13, thanks to the courage of our "Azov" and other regiments, Mariupol was liberated for the second time. It was liberated from the militia, who at that time were not yet fully aware of what the russian state was sending them to. Now they see it. They see burned Mariupol. They see why the Russians came there. But we will not allow this city to remain dead. We will return it. Inevitably."
It only takes enough weapons to make it happen. The partners have it. In sufficient quantities. And we work every day to awaken the political will to provide us with these weapons," the President assured, adding that Ukraine would come to Energodar.
He noted that the Russian occupiers held the occupied territory in the informational and civilizational blockade. They were trying to ensure that people knew nothing about Ukraine and how we were trying to liberate our territory. That people wouldn't think of returning to normal life, that they would succumb. In some areas, the occupiers deliberately refuse to restore electricity supplies, and in many communities, they have blocked communication. In addition, they cut off our television, closed the ways out of the occupation and do not even allow humanitarian corridors so that we can bring people at least essential goods and medicines.
"I ask everyone who has such an opportunity to communicate with people in the occupied south, in the Donbas, in the Kharkiv region. Tell them, tell them about Ukraine. Tell them the truth. Say that there will be liberation. Talk to Kyrylivtsi, Henichesk, Berdyansk, and Mangush. Talk to Horlivka, Donetsk, Luhansk. Speak to everyone in the Kharkiv region who is still forced to see the Russian flag on our Ukrainian land. Tell them the Ukrainian army will surely come," Volodymyr Zelenskyy asked.
The President also mentioned the liberation of Crimea from the occupation. The flag of Ukraine will fly again over Yalta and Sudak, Dzhankoy and Evpatoria. And let every Russian official who has seized precious land in the Crimea remember: this is not the land where they will have peace.
"No one today can say exactly how long our path to victory will last. But most are already aware - this is our way. This is how this war will end," Zelenskyy assured, adding that Ukraine will rebuild everything the occupiers destroyed, from Volnovakha to Chortkiv.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy once again called for increasing sanctions on Russia and helping Ukrainians with offensive weapons. This is necessary to save our citizens' lives, including the children killed by the Russian army at least 287.