INTERNATIONAL UKRAINE ANTI-FASCIST SOLIDARITY

by Ceyda Karan As Russia's special operation in Ukraine continues, life is returning to normal in areas under the control of Russian and Donbass forces. Sputnik correspondent Ceyda Karan shares her impression of the situation from the scene.      I went to Donbass to see the results on the ground of the Special Military Operation in the region, something that is in many ways considered to be a turning point for Russia.      The military operation brought the Lugansk and Donetsk People's Republics, which broke away from the central government after the 2014 coup in Kiev, the constitutional borders they had been waiting eight years for.      In 2018, I had the chance to visit the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics, but at the time they only controlled parts of their constitutional borders. This time I am observing the development of events in Donbass under different circumstances, against the backdrop of Russia's special military operation....

The whole territory of the Lugansk People’s Republic has been wrested from Ukrainian control, Moscow says. The last remnants of Ukrainian forces have been driven out of the Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR), Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu announced on Sunday. He reported the news to President Vladimir Putin, the Defense Ministry said in a statement. Shoigu said Russian troops and Donbass forces had completely seized Lisichansk, the last major city which had remained under Ukrainian control since 2014, when the LPR declared its independence shortly after a coup in Kiev. Russia and Ukraine reported heavy fighting around Lisichansk earlier this week, with the most fierce combat occurring at the city’s oil refinery. News of the capture of Lisichansk comes after Ukrainian troops retreated from Severodonetsk, a nearby city on the opposite side of the Seversky Donets River, last week. The fighting for Severodonetsk had lasted for several months. Russia sent troops into Ukraine on Februa...