Western countries hail Russia’s withdrawal from Kherson

Western officials welcomed Russia’s retreat from the Ukrainian city of Kherson, labeled a “big moment” by the White House and “another strategic failure” for Moscow by the U.K.

Ukrainian troops on Friday entered Kherson, the only provincial capital to be taken by Russia in its invasion. The Russian Defense Ministry confirmed in a video that Moscow’s troops had been withdrawn from the Ukrainian city and other territories on the western bank of the Dnipro River.

“It has broader strategic implications as well,” U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said, “because being able to push the Russians across the river means that the longer-term threat to places like Odesa and the Black Sea coastline are reduced from where they were before.”

“And so this is a big moment. And it’s certainly not the end of the line, but it’s a big moment,” the top White House official told reporters while flying to a Southeast Asian summit in Cambodia, according to a readout published online.

French President Emmanuel Macron called it a “critical step towards the restoration of [Ukraine’s] sovereign rights.”

A statement from the U.K. Defense Ministry said that “Russia’s announced withdrawal from Kherson marks another strategic failure for them. In February, Russia failed to take any of its major objectives except Kherson.”

On Saturday, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said that the “war goes on” after the Ukrainian army’s success. Ahead of a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Cambodia, Kuleba also thanked Washington for helping Kyiv against Moscow’s invasion.

“It’s only together that we will be able to prevail and to kick Russia out of Ukraine. We are on the way. This is coming, and our victory will be our joint victory — victory of all peace-loving nations across the world,” Kuleba said.