MOSCOW, December 19. /TASS/. Russian troops operating in Kupyansk in the Kharkov Region will start moving westward after liberating the nearby town of Kupyansk-Uzlovoi, President Vladimir Putin said at his year-end press conference and Q&A session.

"In the Kharkov Region, as you know, the city of Kupyansk was placed under our control already several weeks ago. Our troops are controlling the city. They are not moving westward so far because they have been assigned a very important task to eliminate the enemy group on the left bank of the Oskol River and seize another settlement, Kupyansk-Uzlovoi, which is actually a junction station," the head of state said.

"After that, and this will, undoubtedly, take place, our units will conclude this combat operation and will also move in the western direction," he said.