As the entry into the war between Russia and Ukraine neared its 14th month and for the second time in two months, Russian President Vladimir Putin paid a visit to the command posts of his troops fighting in Ukraine, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made his last visit to positions near the front line as Kyiv prepares for a possible counterattack with weapons provided by the West.

The visits of both Presidents Putin and Zelensky on different days and in different provinces seek to strengthen the resolve of soldiers on the front lines.

 Edited by| Christian Megan

Politic section -  CJ journalist

KYIV, Ukraine  — April,18,2023

    Kremlin video broadcast by Russian state television showed Putin arriving by helicopter at the command post of Russian forces in southern Ukraine’s Kherson province and then flying to the headquarters of the Russian National Guard in Luhansk province, which is in the country’s east. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the visits took place Monday.

Dressed in a dark suit, Putin attended briefings with his military brass at both of his stops. The locations of the military headquarters weren’t disclosed, making it impossible to assess how close they were to the front line. Nor was it possible to independently verify the authenticity of the video.

On Tuesday, Zelenskyy made his latest trip to visit units in Avdiivka, an eastern city in Donetsk province where fierce battles are taking place, his office said. He heard first-hand reports about fighting and handed out awards.

Zelenskyy’s visits to areas feeling the brunt of Russia’s full-scale invasion gathered pace last month as he shuttled across the country, often by train. As with Putin, the Ukrainian’s wartime trips usually aren’t publicized until after he’s already left an area.

Russia’s war in Ukraine has become largely deadlocked amid heavy fighting in the east, particularly around the Donestk province city of Bakhmut, which for 8½ months has seen the longest and bloodiest battle so far.

Both then and now, large parts of Donetsk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia, as well as some areas of Luhansk province, have remained under Ukrainian control. In November, Russian forces ceded territory in Kherson province, including the region’s namesake capital.

In a related development, the Moscow-appointed governor of the occupied part of Donetsk province, Denis Pushilin, went to the Belarus capital of Minsk and won pledges of support from President Alexander Lukashenko, a Putin ally.

Analysts said Pushilin’s visit was likely approved by the Kremlin and sought to remind Kyiv about the possibility of Belarus joining Russia in the war.

During his visits, Putin congratulated the military divisions on Orthodox Easter, which was celebrated Sunday, and presented them with icons. Speaking to senior officers at the Kherson headquarters, Putin handed them a copy of an Orthodox icon he said belonged to a 19th-century Russian general.

Putin’s trips came as Ukraine is preparing a new counteroffensive to reclaim occupied territories. Last month, he visited the Russian-held port of Mariupol on the Sea of Azov. The city was captured by Russian troops in May 2022 after two months of fierce fighting.

Ukrainian officials have said they’re depleting Russian forces in eastern Ukraine while preparing for a counteroffensive. Zelenskyy has argued that if Russia seizes Bakhmut, it could allow Putin to begin building international support for a deal requiring Ukraine to make compromises to end the war.

Oleksiy Danilov, the secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, told that Ukraine’s allies were helping the government assemble the material needed for a counteroffensive, including heavy armored vehicles and ammunition.

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