In the past few days, Russia has said its war on Ukraine has entered a “new phase” and plans to refocus on the east of the country. At peace talks in Istanbul, Russia said it would significantly reduce its military activity in northern Ukraine, including the capital Kyiv.
If this announcement is to be believed, it would signal a new stage of this war. Guardian reporter Emma Graham-Harrison travelled to Kharkiv, one of the country’s most war-torn cities in eastern Ukraine, with reporter Isobel Koshiw to understand what this new chapter might mean for Ukrainians there. She tells Michael Safi about the Ukrainians there who are resisting the Russian attack in surprising ways.
But is the new plan Russia announced really what it seems? After the peace talks, the Ukrainian military released an intelligence report expressing its doubts about Russia’s intentions. The report stated “the so-called ‘withdrawal of troops’ is probably a rotation of individual units and aims to mislead the military leadership of the Armed Forces of Ukraine”. On the Russian announcement, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the Ukrainian president, said “Ukrainians are not naive people.”
Photograph: Marcus Yam/LOS ANGELES TIMES/REX/Shutterstock
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