MOSCOW, May 18. /TASS/. Some 10,000 people have been evacuated from the border areas of Ukraine’s Kharkov Region, Oleg Sinegubov, head of the regional military administration, said.
"To date, 2,726 residents have been evacuated from the Chuguyevsky District, 4,037 from the Kharkovsky District, and 118 from the Bogodukhovsky District. Volunteers have evacuated another 3,026 people. The total number of evacuees stands at 9,907," he wrote on Telegram.
Earlier, Ukrainian officials admitted that the situation was difficult in the Kharkov area. The Ukrainian General Staff said on May 14 that the country’s armed forces had "to move to more advantageous positions" near the town of Volchansk and the village of Lukyantsy. The military authorities also announced the deployment of additional reserves to the area. Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky held a meeting with senior commanders in Kharkov on May 16, describing the situation as extremely difficult.
The Russian Defense Ministry earlier announced that several settlements had been liberated as troops continued to advance deeper into enemy defenses.