No plan to capture Kharkiv, just want buffer zone: Putin

Kyiv, May 17

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday Moscow’s offensive in Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region aims to create a buffer zone but has no plans to capture the city.

Putin’s comments on a trip to China were his first on the offensive launched on May 10, which opened a new front in the war and displaced thousands within few days.

Moscow launched attacks in Kharkiv in response to Ukrainian shelling of Belgorod region, Putin told reporters Friday on a visit to Harbin, China. He said Russian troops were “advancing daily according to plan" and said there were no plans to capture Kharkiv, for now. — AP

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