Moscow Aiding People To Leave 'Annexed' Region Kherson

Russia agreed Thursday to help residents leave a region it "annexed" in a sign of success for Ukraine's counter-offensive, as the EU warned Moscow's army would be "annihilated" if the Kremlin uses nuclear weapons, Emmanuel Peuchot and Dana Rysmukhamedova reported for Agence France-Presse (AFP).

Photo Insert: Merefa-Kherson Railway Bridge before the war. Moscow's decision to assist people in leaving Kherson came a day after Kyiv said it had retaken five settlements in the southern region.

Moscow's decision to assist people in leaving Kherson came a day after Kyiv said it had retaken five settlements in the southern region.

"The government took the decision to organize assistance for the departure of residents of the (Kherson) region," Russian Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin said. The Moscow-appointed head of the area had appealed for intervention. Vladimir Saldo suggested residents "leave to other regions to protect themselves from missile strikes."

Those departing would go to Crimea, a Ukrainian peninsula Moscow annexed in 2014, and southern Russian regions. However, thousands of people are also leaving Crimea, including Russian military officers, as Ukrainian forces have bombed air bases, sunk the flagship of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, and destroyed aircraft.

Kyiv, which announced its counter-offensive in the south in August, said it has already recaptured over 400 square kilometers (155 miles) in the Kherson region in under a week. Kherson, which lies near Crimea, was the first major Ukrainian city to fall to Russian forces after the February 24 invasion.

In Brussels, European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell sent a strong message to the Kremlin after President Vladimir Putin's veiled threats of resorting to nuclear weapons to stem growing battlefield losses.

"Putin is saying he is not bluffing. Well, he cannot afford bluffing," Borrell said. "Any nuclear attack against Ukraine will create an answer, not a nuclear answer, but such a powerful answer from the military side that the Russian Army will be annihilated."

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