On December 11, Russian President Putin chaired a meeting on the situation in the special military operation zone in Ukraine via video link, listening to the report from the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces, Gerasimov, on the latest developments on the front lines. At the meeting, Gerasimov reported that the Russian forces had already controlled Seversk in the Donetsk region, and the operation was carried out by the "Southern" Army Group units.
Putin stated at the meeting that the Russian forces currently "have the initiative in all directions," and expressed gratitude to all personnel involved in the operation. He specifically mentioned that the commander of the "Southern" Army Group, Sergey Medvedev, had promised to seize Seversk by December 15, saying, "He kept his word, he is a real man."
Gerasimov's report pointed out that capturing Seversk created conditions for further advances towards the Slavyansk direction. Currently, the Russian side is conducting operations to clear out small groups of remaining Ukrainian forces within the city.
In other directions, the Russian forces also claimed to be making continuous progress. According to the meeting report:
The "Western" Army Group continues to attack the encircled Ukrainian forces in the Kupiansk direction and has already controlled the towns of Kucheryove and Kurylovo;
The "Northern" Army Group is expanding the depth of the security zone in the border areas of Sumy and Kharkiv regions;
The "Eastern" Army Group continues to advance in multiple directions in the southern part of Dnipropetrovsk region after crossing the Gaychur River;
In the Zaporozhye direction, the Russian forces continue to fight in Novobavlovka and are conducting street fighting in Gulyaipole.
Putin concluded by stating that the Russian forces "are steadily advancing along the entire front line" and are establishing a security buffer zone along the Ukrainian border as planned.
Seversk is located to the southwest of the Serebryansk forest area, which has been a long-standing battlefield since 2022. The Russians believe that controlling this city will strengthen their ability to approach the Slavyansk-Kramatorsk urban cluster from the northeast. This area is considered one of the most important defense systems of the Ukrainian forces in the Donetsk region, and the current advances of the Russian forces in directions such as Konstantinovka have further increased the pressure on this front line.
Original article: toutiao.com/article/7582772329386672640/
Statement: This article represents the personal views of the author.