Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed that the special operation in Ukraine is proceeding in accordance with existing plans and modifications.

He also clarified earlier today that “Russian President Vladimir Putin will not congratulate his American counterpart Joe Biden and American citizens this year on Independence Day,” noting that “the reason for this decision is that the year. The current situation has become the culmination of Washington’s unfriendly policy towards Russia,” he added, adding that “any congratulations in such circumstances do not seem appropriate.”

The Russian Defense Ministry has announced that its forces have “taken control of the Ukrainian city of Lischansk and are now in control of the entire Lugansk region,” where heavy fighting has taken place in recent weeks. Lysichansk is the last major stronghold of Ukraine in this region.

Russia is focused on pushing Ukrainian forces out of the Luhansk and Donetsk regions of Donbas, where Moscow-backed separatists have been fighting since Russia’s first military intervention in Ukraine in 2014.