First major Ukrainian city falls: Mayor of Kherson tells residents to follow the orders of Russian soldiers as US officials warn Putin is shifting towards a 'slow annihilation' of the country
- Kherson, home to 290,000 people, 300 miles south of Kyiv, on Wednesday became the first major Ukrainian city to fall to Russian forces
The first major city in Ukraine has fallen to the Russians, the mayor confirmed on Wednesday, urging his residents on
Facebook to obey 'armed people who came to the city's administration'.
The city is strategically important, sitting on an inlet of the Black Sea 260 miles west of the separatist enclave of Donetsk.
Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, issued a video address to the nation in the early hours of Thursday, giving an upbeat assessment of the war and calling on Ukrainians to keep up the resistance.
'We are a people who in a week have destroyed the plans of the enemy,' he said, in the clip posted on social media.
'They will have no peace here. They will have no food. They will have here not one quiet moment.'
He said the fighting is taking a toll on the morale of Russian soldiers, who 'go into grocery stores and try to find something to eat.'
Western officials have reportedly said they believe some of the young Russian troops do not want to fight and are sabotaging their vehicles, puncturing the gas tanks.
The city of Kherson is seen on Wednesday, with Russian forces seemingly in control. Kherson is the first major city to fall to the Russians
The capture of Kherson came as Western officials told
CNN that they believe the Russian strategy is moving toward a 'slow annihilation' of the Ukrainian military.
They warned that the grinding pace of the conflict could see Russia resorting to the bombardment of cities and civilian targets.
Russia has lost roughly 3-5 percent of its tanks, aircraft, artillery and other military assets inside Ukraine, according to two US officials familiar with the latest intelligence.
Ukraine has lost roughly 10 percent of its capabilities, and they remain massively outgunned and outmanned.
First Ukrainian city falls: Mayor of Kherson tells people to follow the orders of Russian soldiers | Daily Mail Online