The Russian-appointed administration of Ukraine’s Kherson region said it is organizing local men into militia units.

In a statement via the Telegram app, the occupation authorities said the men have the opportunity to join territorial defence units if they choose to remain in Kherson of their own free will.

However, men in other occupied Ukrainian regions, such as Donetsk, have in the past been forced to join and fight alongside pro-Russian forces. Russian President, Vladimir Putin, declared martial law last week in the occupied territories, authorizing Russian-appointed administrations to step up conscription.

Meanwhile, Russia fired missiles and launched unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) against the southern Ukrainian-controlled city of Mykolayiv, destroying an apartment complex, as it said the war was spiraling out of control in telephone communications with Western Defence Ministers.

The strike on the shipyard town, about 35 kilometers northwest of the Kherson front, came as Russia ordered 60,000 people to leave the region “to save [their] lives from the Ukrainian counterattack.

Also, Russian Defence Minister, Sergei Shoigu, discussed the rapidly deteriorating situation by telephone with his counterparts in Britain, France and Turkey, the Ministry said. He also spoke by phone with US Defence Secretary, Lloyd Austin, for the second time in three days. The Pentagon said Austin told Shoigu that he rejected any pretense of Russian escalation.

Source: AMNA

Also read: Russia | Martial law in annexed regions – Explosions in Kiev and evacuation of Kherson