Ukraine Denies Russia's Claims of Complete Control Over Luhansk Region

On April 1, 2023, Ukrainian military officials categorically denied the information disseminated by Russia regarding the complete occupation of the Luhansk region. According to the Ukrainian military, although a significant portion of the region is currently under the control of Russian forces, the city of Luhansk and the regional administration are still governed by pro-Kremlin proxies. However, a small section along the western border of the Luhansk region remains contested.

The Russian Ministry of Defense announced on the same day that its forces had 'completed' the occupation of the Luhansk region. However, this assertion was swiftly dismissed by Ukrainian military representatives, who labeled it as propaganda.

“Ukrainian troops are holding the last lines of defense in the region,” stated the Third Assault Brigade of Ukraine in a Telegram message. The brigade highlighted that Russian forces had made 144 attempts to storm populated areas near the border of Luhansk and Donetsk regions over the past six months, involving more than 260 Russian soldiers. According to the brigade, Russia has lost up to 260 servicemen during these assaults.

A battlefield monitoring group, DeepState, confirmed that as of April 1, the mentioned populated areas remain unoccupied. The precise measurement of control, losses, and territorial gains along the front line is becoming increasingly complex, as the contested 'gray zone' between Ukrainian and Russian territories continues to expand.

The Luhansk region is part of Ukraine's Donbas and is one of four regions that the Russian Federation has claimed as its own. Russian troops have occupied the Luhansk region since their invasion of the Donbas in 2014. In September 2022, Russia illegally announced the annexation of Luhansk along with Donetsk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia.

Russia continues to demand that Ukraine withdraw its forces from the entire Donbas territory, including areas still controlled by Kyiv. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated on April 1 that President Volodymyr Zelensky must resolve the issue of capitulation in the region 'today.'

This demand came just a day after Zelensky stated that Russia had given Kyiv two months to withdraw its forces from the Donbas or face additional conditions in peace talks mediated by the United States, which have been stalled amid the ongoing war in Iran.