Lyman, a key supply hub in eastern Ukraine, was “fully cleared” of Russian forces this weekend, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Sunday, as Western military leaders past and present cast the troops’ withdrawal as a strategic victory that could undermine Russia’s effort to control the Donetsk region. Donetsk is one of four Ukrainian regions that Russia claimed it annexed after staged referendums, in violation of international law and despite widespread global criticism. Russia, meanwhile, is looking ahead to next steps after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the annexations.
