Ukraine Says Goal Is to Retake All Its Territory in War with Russia

Ukraine Says Goal Is to Retake All Its Territory in War with Russia

Ukraine's leaders say they want to retake all the territory occupied by Russian forces. Ukrainian officials have called on the West to speed up providing weapons systems to support their offensive¹.

Russian forces withdrew from areas they held in northeastern Ukraine on Saturday. Ukrainian troops have recaptured many towns. This change in control could be the Russian military's worst defeat since the early days of the war.

Deputy² Defense³ Minister Hanna Malyar told Reuters on Tuesday that fighting continues in the northeastern Kharkiv area. She added that Ukraine's forces were making progress because they are highly motivated and their operation is well planned.

Malyar said, "The aim is to liberate⁴ the Kharkiv region and beyond - all the territories occupied by the Russian Federation⁵."

In a video speech late on Monday, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said the West must send weapons systems more quickly.

Western allies⁶ have given Ukraine billions of dollars in weapons that, the country says, helped limit gains by Russia. Russian forces are estimated to control about one fifth of the country, mainly in the south and east. But Ukraine is now carrying out an offensive in both areas.

Shelling continues

The Ukrainian military reports Russian forces were shelling parts of the retaken Kharkiv area. The Russian troops also are attacking further south in the Donetsk area, which is controlled by separatist groups supported by Russia. Ukraine had resisted the attacks in the Donetsk region, its general staff report said.

Denis Pushilin is head of the separatist group in the Donetsk aera. He said its forces were resisting Ukrainian attacks and he believed the situation would improve.

Ukraine's border guards service showed a video of what it said were Ukrainian troops liberating⁷ the town of Vovchansk near the country's border with Russia. They were burning flags and tearing down a poster saying, "We are one with Russia".

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Monday that Ukrainian forces had made "significant progress" with Western support.

Some Russian broadcasters have criticized Russia's leadership over the loss of territory in Ukraine and called for more troops. A Russian government spokesman⁸ Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Russians continue to support President Vladimir Putin.

On Monday, Peskov said the military operation would continue until it reached its goals. He did not answer a question about whether Putin still trusts in the abilities of his military leaders.

Ukrainian officials said Russia has answered Ukraine's battlefield successes by shelling power stations and other important structures. This caused a loss of electricity in Kharkiv and some other places. Russia has said Ukraine is responsible for the power outages.

Words in This Story

motivated – adj. having a good reason to achieve or do something

liberate – v. free the people of an area from the political or military control of another country, area, or group of people

significant –adj. large enough to be noticed or to have an effect

1 offensive   

adj.令人不快的，侮辱的，攻击用的；n.进攻

参考例句：

• His mode of doing business is offensive to me.他干事情的方式叫我很不喜欢。
• If all else fails,I will take the offensive.如果其他方法不行，我将采取攻势。

2 deputy   

n.代理人，代表，副职；adj.代理的，副的

参考例句：

• John will act as a deputy for me during my absence.我离开期间，约翰将代理我的职务。
• She is the deputy headmistress of the school.她是那所学校的代理校长。

3 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

4 liberate   

v.解放，使获得自由，释出，放出；vt.解放，使获自由

参考例句：

• They did their best to liberate slaves.他们尽最大能力去解放奴隶。
• This will liberate him from economic worry.这将消除他经济上的忧虑。

5 federation   

n.同盟，联邦，联合，联盟，联合会

参考例句：

• It is a federation of 10 regional unions.它是由十个地方工会结合成的联合会。
• Mr.Putin was inaugurated as the President of the Russian Federation.普京正式就任俄罗斯联邦总统。

6 allies   

联盟国，同盟者； 同盟国，同盟者( ally的名词复数 )； 支持者； 盟军

参考例句：

• The allies would fear that they were pawns in a superpower condominium. 这个联盟担心他们会成为超级大国共管的牺牲品。
• A number of the United States' allies had urged him not to take a hasty decision. 美国的一些盟友已力劝他不要急于作决定。

7 liberating   

解放，释放( liberate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Revolution means liberating the productive forces. 革命就是为了解放生产力。
• They had already taken on their shoulders the burden of reforming society and liberating mankind. 甚至在这些集会聚谈中，他们就已经夸大地把改革社会、解放人群的责任放在自己的肩头了。 来自汉英文学 - 家（1-26） - 家（1-26）

8 spokesman   

n.发言人，代言人

参考例句：

• The government spokesman gave a quick briefing to the reporters.政府发言人向记者们作了情况简介。
• They drew lots to decide who should be their spokesman.他们抽签决定谁是他们的发言人。