The Ukrainian military is firing artillery at Russian units that are trying to gain a foothold in Kreminna after leaving Lyman, Serhiy Cherevaty, spokesman for the Eastern Group of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, has said.

"Some of them [Russian soldiers] were physically destroyed, some were taken prisoner, and some were able to leave in certain columns or small groups. Now some of them are trying to take up defense in Kreminna. Accordingly, our units continue to work there [because their remnants are in the forests] to stabilize the situation, capture the remnants of the invaders, and clear mines. The territory is heavily mined, there are many mines of various types, tripwires, the so-called 'petals' [antipersonnel mines] ... Also, our units have already taken the village of Torske on the road to Kreminna and are hitting enemy units with artillery fire, which are trying to gain a foothold in Kreminna and build a defense," Cherevaty said on the air of the national telethon on Sunday.

According to the speaker, having overcome Kreminna, the Armed Forces of Ukraine will reach Svatovo, Rubizhne, and then they will be able to de-occupy Luhansk region.

"And behind them, there are Severodonetsk and Lysychansk, which they [the Russians] boasted about so much in the summer that they took it with incredible power. Thanks to the insane steel will of our defenders, they then managed to exhaust the enemy and planned the retreat from Lysychansk, as well as build competent defense, respectively, in order to prepare for a counteroffensive," Cherevaty said.