Ukrainian General Staff: Russian ‘authorities’ in occupied parts of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions preparing for evacuation of local residents to Crimea

The Russian “authorities” in the occupied parts of the Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions have begun preparations for evacuation of local residents to annexed Crimea, as per the daily bulletin of Ukraine’s Armed Forces.

According to the bulletin, the occupation “government” has organised a survey among the local population on the issue of potential evacuation in the cities of Melitopol and Skadovsk. During the survey, they were checking people’s passports, registration, and level of education. Buses with people willing to evacuate also periodically depart the cities, Ukraine’s Armed Forces note. 

Furthermore, Ukrainian media report that defensive trenches the length of about 70 km are being dug in the Zaporizhzhia region. According to media analysts, the construction of a defensive line from two different directions was started in September 2022.

Yesterday, 7 April, The New York Times reported that the Pentagon was investigating a leak of classified war documents detailing US and NATO plans “for building up the Ukrainian military ahead of a planned offensive against Russia” to social media.

These documents appeared on Twitter and Telegram this week. They include information on arms supply, number of troops, and other plans.

At the same time, there is no indication in the documents as to when and how Ukraine plans to start the offensive. Moreover, the majority of the information is only relevant as of 1 March.