Russia says it’s pulling out of Kherson

Russia said Wednesday it was removing its troops from the only Ukrainian provincial capital that it has captured. Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu told Russian TV that the military couldn’t supply its troops to Kherson anymore. Russia illegally annexed the Kherson region in September, and Ukrainian troops cut off supply lines to the city in a counter-offensive.

What does that mean for the war? Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia could be trying to lure Ukraine into a slow, entrenched battle in the city. A Ukrainian presidential adviser said there was no sign that Russia was withdrawing. If Russia is leaving the city, it could open up a path for Russian troops to start taking back territory in the Zaporizhzhia region and possibly farther south into Crimea.

Dig deeper: Read Evgeny Kosykh’s report in World Tour on Russians defying a conscription decree.