PRESS RELEASE : Mykhailo Podolyak on the Russian invasion – Russian troops have not gained any operational and tactical advantage in Ukraine

The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 26 February 2022.

The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation have not gained any operational and tactical advantage over the past 24 hours, which indicates that Ukraine is winning. This was stated by Adviser to the Head of the President’s Office Mykhailo Podoliak.

“We understood that tonight would be difficult, because Russia planned to use and used all its resources and reserves to inflict maximum damage on us in the maximum number of our cities. I will say at once that this did not happen – the Armed Forces of Ukraine together with the National Police of Ukraine completely control the whole situation and the territory of our state,” he stressed.

According to the Adviser to the Head of the President’s Office, heavy fighting continues in the south in the cities of Kherson, Mykolaiv and Odesa. Russia considers this direction a priority.

“They wanted to establish themselves there, but there is no hint that they succeeded,” said Mykhailo Podoliak.

Also, according to him, the direction of Kyiv remains a priority for Russia, as the goal of the special operation of the Russian Federation is to destroy the political and military leadership of Ukraine.

“For this reason, there was an attempt to draw the maximum amount of equipment and forces of the Russian Armed Forces to the city of Kyiv. At the moment, we can say the following: the situation in the city and on the outskirts of the city is under control,” said the Adviser to the Head of the President’s Office.

He added that there are some enemy subversive reconnaissance units against which the police and representatives of the Territorial Defense Forces are actively working. In addition, the Armed Forces are actively working on the outskirts of Kyiv.

According to Mykhailo Podoliak, fierce fighting continues around the city of Mariupol in the southern direction.

“But there is no chance that Mariupol will side with the Russian Federation or be captured by the Russian armed forces at the moment,” he said.

In addition, according to the Adviser to the Head of the Office of the President, air alarms are constantly working in many cities of the country, because the Russian army uses missile artillery and aircraft for direct strikes on Ukrainian cities.

“However, as of 7 am, February 26, despite the amount of resources and reserves that were thrown into the active offensive of the Russian Federation, the armed forces of this country did not receive any operational and tactical advantage. This shows that Ukraine has not just survived – Ukraine is winning” he said.

Mykhailo Podoliak stressed that Ukraine’s defense is actively carried out by the Armed Forces, the National Police and the Territorial Defense.

“People know how to defend their country. President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy is working on a regular basis. Today, as in the last two days, he will hold a series of important talks with representatives of our Western partners in order to form the most effective coalition against the Russian Federation,” he said.

The Adviser to the Head of the President’s Office noted that the country is controlled, and this is very important, because the enemy uses a lot of disinformation to make Ukrainians lose faith in their victory.