Russia to evacuate civilians from Kherson as Ukrainians close in

Russia will help evacuate civilians from the Kherson region after Kremlin-backed authorities there asked for aid following a Ukrainian counter-offensive.

"The government took the decision to organise assistance for the departure of residents of the (Kherson) region to other regions of the country," Russian Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin said on state television.

Russian forces are likely attempting to consolidate a new front line west from the village of Mylove, according to British intelligence.

A grinding Ukrainian counter-offensive, launched in September, has recaptured swathes of land in the southern Kherson region, with Kyiv's forces edging towards the regional capital, Kherson city.

It was claimed that Vladimir Putin’s troops in the southern region had been forced to retreat some 20 kilometres since early October.

The Ukrainian military this week said it had liberated five more settlements in the region and recaptured nearly 1,200 square kilometres of territory.

Vladimir Saldo, the Russian-installed leader of the occupied Kherson region, has called on Moscow to help evacuate civilians, in a sign the counter-offensive is gaining pace.

"We suggested to all people of the Kherson region to, if they wish, leave to other regions to protect themselves from missile hits," he wrote on the Telegram messaging app.

"In addressing the leadership of the country [Russia], I ask you to help organise this work."

A flight of civilians from Kherson would be a major blow to Russia's claim to have annexed around 15 per cent of Ukraine's territory this month and incorporated an area the size of Portugal into Russia.

Russia has concentrated many of its best-trained troops to defend its grip on the regional capital - the only large Ukrainian city it has captured intact since its invasion in February and its only foothold on the Dnipro's west bank.

But that force can only be supplied across the river, which is several kilometers wide and has few crossings.

British military officials said Russia has become concerned that fighting could soon reach the city of Kherson.

"In recent days, the Russian occupation authorities have likely ordered preparation for the evacuation of some civilians from Kherson," said the Ministry of Defence.

"It is likely that they anticipate combat extending to the city of Kherson itself."

Ukraine has continued to use long-range weapons, such as the US-provided Himars, to target Russian logistical hubs behind enemy lines.

The tactic helped its armed forces soften up Russian lines before launching the long-awaited counter-offensive.

Ukraine's southern command said its troops had destroyed five ammunition depots, two fuel trucks, two armoured vehicles and three artillery systems on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Vladimir Putin continued his aerial barrage on the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, where residents were awoken by the sound of air raid sirens for the fourth consecutive day.

Oleksiy Kuleba, the Kyiv regional governor, said the strike on Thursday, using Iranian-made "kamikaze" drones, hit a village near the capital.

A five-storey apartment building was also destroyed in Mykolaiv as the result of overnight shelling.

In the east, three Russian missiles exploded on Thursday morning near the central market in Kupiansk, a major railway junction city that Ukrainian forces recaptured during their big advance there in September.

The missiles destroyed shops, carpeting surrounding streets with glass shards, rubble and twisted metal sheets.

Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine's president, warned that his country had just 10 per cent of the required air-defence systems needed to protect itself from Russian missile barrages.

Nato allies meeting in Brussels on Thursday unveiled plans to jointly beef up Europe's air defences with Patriot and other missile systems.

"We are living in threatening, dangerous times," said Christine Lambrecht, Germany's defence minister, at a signing ceremony - where Germany and more than a dozen European Nato members committed to jointly procuring weapons for a "European Sky Shield".

Moscow and Kyiv on Thursday said they had exchanged 20 soldiers each in their latest prisoner swap.

"Another exchange of prisoners, another moment of joy," Andriy Yermak, Ukrainian presidential aide, said on Telegram. "We have managed to free 20 people."

They were "14 soldiers of Ukraine's army, four members of the territorial defence, a member of the national guard and a member of Ukraine's navy," said Mr Yermak.

There were also "people that the Russians detained in Olenivka prison and in the temporarily occupied areas of the Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions", he added.

Mr Yermak posted two photos and a short video of the released prisoners in military uniform sitting on a bus, saying the freed soldiers were undergoing medical examinations.

Russia's defence ministry said in a statement on Telegram: "Twenty Russian soldiers have returned from Ukrainian territory controlled by Kyiv." It added that they were getting the medical and psychological help they needed.

Russia and Ukraine last exchanged prisoners on Tuesday, with Kyiv saying 32 of its soldiers had been freed.