Ukrainians near Kharkiv claim they pushed the Russians back to the border

A jubilant contingent of Ukraine’s military says they pushed invading Russian troops back across its border north of Kharkiv, posting a photo with the Ukrainian-colored stake and the message: “Mr. President! We made it!”

The total pushback marks a major success, wiping out all Russian conquests in the region since the outbreak of war. While Western military analysts have been unable to verify the number of troops or the exact area where the photo was taken, the photo appears to mark a notable achievement in an unprovoked war that Russia clearly thought it could easily win.

CNN reports that Ukraine has liberated several villages around Kharkiv, which was one of the hardest-hit cities at the start of the invasion. It was then the second largest city in Ukraine, but now most of the civilian population has fled. “Their advances threaten the symbolic embarrassment of driving Kremlin forces back to their own borders, while posing the strategic threat of cutting off Russia’s supply lines to Ukraine and its forces further south in the Donbass region,” an official told CNN.

Elsewhere, fierce fighting continues, with Russian troops concentrating their remaining weapons on the Luhansk and Donetsk regions. “The Russians are concentrating their forces there. This is the only place where they can progress. It will be the hottest area in the coming days,” Vadym Denysenko, adviser to Ukraine’s Interior Ministry, said on state television on Monday, according to Reuters. “I hope we can fend them off. Russian attacks are suffocating…retreating, blowing up bridges. Our forces are attacking.”

Meanwhile, Europe is preparing for another round of sanctions in hopes of further curtailing the Kremlin’s ability to wage war. McDonald’s announced Monday it would sell its remaining business assets in Russia, marking the end of a 30-year affair in which Russians embraced American culture. The fast-food giant closed its 850 restaurants in March but has now decided the move will be permanent. “The humanitarian crisis caused by the war in Ukraine and the resulting unpredictable operating environment have led McDonald’s to conclude that continuing operations in Russia is no longer viable and inconsistent with McDonald’s values,” das said company in a statement.

French automaker Renault also announced on Monday that it had handed over its Russian assets to the Kremlin, marking the end of one of big Western companies’ remaining economic ties with the increasingly isolated country. Production of Renault cars will cease and production of a facelifted Moskvitch model will take their place. “I have decided to list the factory as a city asset and resume production under the historic Moskvich brand,” Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on Monday. “We will turn a new page in the history of the Moskvitch in 2022.”