Russia appoints new overall commander for its military in Ukraine

WASHINGTON – Russia has appointed a caller commandant to pb each of its forces successful Ukraine arsenic the Kremlin's warfare marches into its eighth month.

Sergei Surovikin, an Army wide who besides oversees Russia's aerial force, antecedently led Russian forces successful Syria. His caller relation volition impact galvanizing Russian troops aft a slew of setbacks, including dense losses of troops and equipment, and the forfeiture of thousands of quadrate miles of occupied territory.

Surovikin's assignment comes connected the heels of Russian President Vladimir Putin's plans to conscript hundreds of thousands of Russian men for the war. Putin's bid for astir 300,000 Russians to articulation the combat successful Ukraine is the archetypal clip since World War II that Moscow has drafted civilians into the military.

The Kremlin's determination to enforce a partial draught was triggered successful portion by a bid of stunning Ukrainian advances successful caller weeks.

Last week, Putin declared that four Ukrainian regions present belonged to Russia. The Russian person cited referendums, wide viewed arsenic rigged and amerciable by Western governments, held successful Russian-occupied regions of Ukraine.

"The results are known, good known," Putin said connected Sept. 30. "There are 4 caller regions of Russia," referring to the Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson.

On the heels of Putin's address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said helium volition taxable an "accelerated" exertion for his state to articulation the NATO subject alliance.

Equipped with an arsenal of Western weapons, Ukrainian forces person retaken immense swaths of territory that had been occupied by Russian forces since the aboriginal days of the war. Their battlefield successes person dented the estimation of the Kremlin's mighty warfare machine.

But arsenic Ukraine fights to retake onshore 1 colony astatine a time, the outgo to civilians has been enormous.

So far, the U.N. estimates that Russia's penetration has claimed much than 6,000 civilian lives and led to much than 8,600 injuries. The Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights adds that the decease toll successful Ukraine is apt higher.