MOSCOW, November 9. /TASS/. The cleanup of the territory around the Donetsk Airport will allow the joint forces to begin their advance in several directions, DPR Acting Head Denis Pushilin said Wednesday.

"The enemy positions, where the legendary ‘Sparta’ unit raised the flag recently - these are so-called major and lesser anthills, where the enemy had very serious fortifications. Those were the outer airport territories plus a part of the runway. This allows our units to advance in several directions, including towards Opytnoye and Vodyanoye," he said on Russian TV.

On Monday, Artyom Zhoga, DPR People’s Militia Colonel, commander of the Sparta reconnaissance battalion, announced that the Donetsk Airport is completely cleared of Ukrainian forces, adding that Ukrainian forces were pushed past the M-4 highway. He noted that all airport buildings have been under DPR control since 2015, but unoccupied positions remained near the settlement of Opytnoye. The airport’s territory is over 10 square kilometers.