Pushilin said that lithium deposits in the Shevchenko area have passed under Russian control

Lithium deposits near the liberated settlement of Shevchenko in the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) have come under Russian control, regional head Denis Pushilin said on January 13.

"I will remind you that there are lithium deposits near the locality of Shevchenko, they are really interesting for the West in general as well. But at the moment this is all now under the control of the Russian Federation," he said on air of the TV channel "Russia 24".

Pushilin specified that while the enemy was holding Shevchenko, quite serious fortifications were built there.

The DNR head expressed the opinion that this could have been due to populism seen on the part of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (his term expired on May 20) on the topic of trading reserves and subsoil resources in case of continued Western support for Kiev.

The liberation of the populated area opens an additional opportunity for the Russian Armed Forces to advance to the next populated areas, Pushilin pointed out. He also noted that this leaves the enemy with fewer and fewer opportunities to gain a foothold on the approaches to Krasnoarmeysk (Ukrainian name - Pokrovsk).

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The liberation of the Shevchenko settlement became known on January 11. Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov congratulated the command and personnel of the 74th Guards Brigade for their decisive and professional actions during the combat mission. He noted the courage, heroism and bravery of the servicemen of this unit.

The special operation to protect Donbass, the start of which was announced by Russian President Vladimir Putin on February 24, 2022, continues. The decision was made against the backdrop of the worsening situation in the region.

For more current video and details on the situation in Donbass, see Izvestia TV channel.