Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said his army was advancing “quickly and strongly” in the south and this week recaptured “dozens” of cities in the south and east from the Russians.

In a daily speech posted on social media, Zelenskiy said the Ukrainian army is “advancing rapidly and confidently in the south of our country… Dozens of cities have been liberated this week alone” in four regions annexed by Russia as of the end of last week.

The Russian army retreated Tuesday in Kharkiv Oblast (northeast) as well as Kherson Oblast (south), according to maps released by the Russian Defense Ministry that show the latest achievements of the Ukrainian counter-offensive in Moscow-annexed territories.

These maps, compared to those released the day before, show that Russian forces withdrew from a large number of areas, including from Dudchane, located on the western bank of the Dnieper, while the Ukrainian army launched a counterattack in the area.

According to Western and Ukrainian estimates, about 20,000 Russian soldiers are stationed in the region.

In recent weeks, Ukrainian forces have concentrated their fire on Russian positions and warehouses on the right bank of the Dnieper, as well as on bridges across the river, to cut off Russian supply lines.

A map of the Kharkiv region in northeastern Ukraine also showed that the Russians had almost completely abandoned the eastern bank of the Oskill River, which is the last area that Russian troops still controlled in the region, but the Russian army did not announce this. no retreat and no comment on the retreat, as the maps show.