Defense Ministry: Enemy's main goal is to encircle Ukrainian forces, create land corridor to Crimea

Oleksandr Motuzianyk, spokesman for the Ukrainian Defense Ministry, said this at a briefing at the Ukraine Media Center – Ukrinform.

"The main goal of the enemy now is to try to encircle and defeat the Joint Forces, to establish full control over the territory of the Donetsk, Luhansk and Kherson regions, as well as to ensure the stability of a land corridor with the occupied Crimea," Motuzianyk said.

He said that in the Sloviansk direction, the enemy is concentrating its efforts on establishing control over the village of Dovhenke, 15 km south of Izium.

In the Donetsk direction, the aggressor is conducting active hostilities in the Sievierodonetsk, Bakhmut, Avdiivka and Kurakhove directions. In the Bakhmut area, the enemy is attempting to cross the Siverskyi Donets river near Serebrianka, 5 km north of Siversk, Motuzianyk said.

However, according to him, in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, Ukrainian defenders repelled 12 enemy attacks on May 17, destroying three tanks, three artillery systems, six armored fighting vehicles and seven vehicles of the enemy.