Russia Announces Complete Control Over Luhansk Region
The Russian Ministry of Defense has announced that forces affiliated with the “Western Task Force” have completed the capture and consolidation of control over the Luhansk region within their respective area of responsibility. According to the ministry, with this action, full administration of the region in eastern Ukraine has fallen into Russian hands.
Russia had previously declared the Luhansk region, along with Donetsk, annexed into its territory—a move that drew widespread international condemnation. However, prior to this announcement, parts of Luhansk remained outside Russian control.
Luhansk is part of the Donbas area in eastern Ukraine, an industrial and strategic region that has been a site of armed conflict for years. Since the start of the large-scale war with Ukraine, Moscow has emphasized complete dominance over Donbas, naming it a primary objective of its military operation.
Russian President Vladimir Putin had earlier stated that Moscow had attempted to establish some form of relations between the self-proclaimed republics of Donetsk and Luhansk and the Ukrainian government. However, he claimed Kyiv did not recognize these entities. He also asserted that the inhabitants of these regions had voted in a referendum to separate from Ukraine.
