Ukrainian army servicemen. Archival photoTROITSKOE (LPR), May 27. The Ukrainian military blew up a bridge across the Lugan River in the Luhansk region, trying to delay the advance of the forces of the Lugansk People's Republic, RIA Novosti correspondent reports. This site was on the line of demarcation for eight years, but the defenses had been breached a few days ago. The engineering forces of the LPR established a pontoon crossing, and the troops continued to move forward. Russia launched a military operation in Ukraine on February 24. President Vladimir Putin called its goal «the protection of people who have been subjected to bullying and genocide by the Kyiv regime for eight years.» For this, according to him, it is planned to carry out «demilitarization and denazification of Ukraine», to bring to justice all war criminals responsible for «bloody crimes against civilians» in Donbass. According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, the Armed Forces strike only at military infrastructure and Ukrainian troops and , on March 25, completed the main tasks of the first stage — significantly reduced the combat potential of Ukraine. The main goal in the Russian military department was called the liberation of Donbass.
