President Volodymyr Zelenskyi said that Ukrainian troops have recaptured several settlements in the Kherson region, one of the southern regions partially occupied by Russia, which Moscow allegedly annexed.

Highlights of Thursday, the 225th day of the Ukrainian war, LIVETEXT:

00:16 Russia is lobbying for a secret vote instead of a public one when the 193-member UN General Assembly next week considers whether to condemn Moscow’s move to annex four partially occupied regions of Ukraine after staged mock referendums, Reuters reported.

23:35 Ukrainian troops liberated three more settlements in the south of Kherson region on Wednesday, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi said in a video message on Wednesday evening, Reuters reports.

​h2: A brief summary of recent events:

• Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that the military situation is “stabilizing” in Ukrainian territories he claims to have annexed, but where his forces are suffering a series of setbacks against the Ukrainian army.
• A few hours earlier, Ukraine announced that it was regaining positions in the east of Luhansk region after successes in Kherson (southern) and Kharkiv (northeast).
• Vladimir Putin signed a decree by which Russia officially took ownership of the Ukrainian nuclear power plant in Zaporizhzhia (south). For his part, the head of the IAEA, Raphael Grossi, announced his departure to Kyiv to discuss the need “as never before” to establish “a protective zone around [acestei] central”.
• Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that he had signed a decree to make “corrections” to the partial mobilization process announced on September 21, Reuters reported.
• In a sign of frustration in Russia, the military’s failures prompted a senior parliamentary official to ask it to “stop lying” about its defeats. “Our people are not stupid. And they see that we don’t want it, we tell them not even a part of the truth. This can lead to a loss of trust,” said Andriy Kartapolov, head of the defense committee of the Duma, the lower house of parliament, and a former military commander.
• Kyiv troops continue their counteroffensive, gaining new gains in the east and south.
• The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyi, in a daily video call, congratulated the recapture of three new villages in the Kherson region, assuring that “the movement continues.”
• Earlier in the day, the Ukrainian governor of the Luhansk region, which until now was almost completely controlled by Moscow, announced that he had made a discovery. “Now it’s official. It started [recucerirea] Luhansk region Several settlements have already been liberated,” said Serhiy Gaidai, without giving other details.
• Almost all of Kharkiv Oblast (northeast) now appears to be under Ukrainian control, opening the way to Luhansk, a separatist stronghold created by Moscow since 2014.
• On Tuesday, the Russian military only half-heartedly acknowledged the troop withdrawal, releasing maps showing that Moscow had ceded all of northern Kherson Oblast and that its presence in Kharkiv was now minimal.
• A video report by BBC journalists shows what remains of the Russian army’s chaotic retreat from Liman: dead Russian soldiers abandoned by the side of the road, objects and equipment left behind in the chaotic escape, and a destroyed city.
• The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) recognized Ukraine as a “potential member country”, which was the first step in a very long process of accession.
• The American daily newspaper New York Times writes that the United States believes that Ukrainians are behind the murder of Daria Dugina, citing American officials who said on condition of anonymity that they did not know in advance about the plan of the attack that killed Dugina and that they warned Ukraine in connection with this.
• Roberta Metzola: the EU should supply Ukraine with tanks, especially the Leopard 2, and also speed up the procedure for this country’s accession to the EU bloc
• A video recording of a Russian soldier cursing while trying to wrap his leg in rags instead of a sock became a reason for new ironies of the Ukrainian army.
• The number of Russians who entered the European Union decreased by 20% last week compared to the previous week due to new restrictions introduced in EU countries, Frontex announced on Wednesday, quoted by AFP.

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Wednesday’s events surrounding the Russian invasion were broadcast LIVE on HotNews.ro