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Annexation signed as Ukraine advanced in Kherson
Summary
A look back at the day Russia formalised its claim to four Ukrainian regions while Ukrainian forces retook ground along the Dnieper.
What did a signature in Moscow change on the ground in southern Ukraine on 5 October 2022? According to the reports of that day, the answer was a legal claim moving in one direction while the front line moved in another.
On 5 October 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law formally annexing the Donetsk People's Republic, the Luhansk People's Republic, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia into Russia. The step came a day after the Federation Council of Russia unanimously approved the annexation of the four regions, leaving only the president's final signature on the documents.
A counteroffensive that kept moving
The same day, Ukrainian troops recaptured the strategic village of Dudchany, on the west bank of the Dnieper, after Russian forces withdrew. The gain followed a rapid advance. On 3 October 2022, Ukrainian forces had moved more than 20 kilometres along the Dnieper towards Dudchany in Kherson Oblast, in what was being called a major breakthrough.
On 4 October 2022, Ukraine's 35th Marine Brigade retook Davydiv Brid in Beryslav Raion, also in Kherson Oblast, as the ground offensive continued. The Ukrainian Interior Ministry said that around 3,500 citizens had been freed from Russian occupation in recent days.
Pressure inside the Russian command
The military setbacks also had consequences for Russian leadership. On 3 October 2022, the Russian Defence Ministry dismissed Colonel General Alexander Zhuravlyov in response to a series of military defeats in Ukraine. Major General Roman Berdnikov replaced him as commander of the Western Military District.
What the sequence shows
Taken together, the reports from 3 to 5 October 2022 set out a stark contrast. Russia's legislative and presidential steps declared Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, along with the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, to be part of Russia. Meanwhile, in Kherson Oblast, Ukrainian units were advancing along the Dnieper and taking villages that Russian forces were leaving.
The dismissal of a district commander because of defeats, announced two days before the signing, shows that the Russian Defence Ministry was reacting to the battlefield situation even as the political process went ahead. The annexation law and the recapture of Dudchany were both recorded on 5 October 2022, and they framed that day in the war.
