Russian losses evident in key liberated Ukrainian city

LYMAN, Ukraine (AP) — The bodies of Russian soldiers were lying in the streets of a key eastern Ukrainian city on Tuesday, evidence of a hasty retreat that marked a new military defeat for Moscow as it struggles to hang on to areas it illegally annexed last week.

Russia’s upper house of parliament rubber-stamped the annexation of four Ukrainian regions on Tuesday, following “referendums” that Ukraine and its Western allies dismissed as illegal and fraudulent.

The picture on the ground, however, underscored the disarray Russian President Vladimir Putin faces in his response to Ukrainian advances and attempts to establish new Russian borders.

Over the weekend, Russian troops pulled back from Lyman, a strategic eastern city that the Russians had used as a key logistics and transport hub, to avoid being encircled by Ukrainian forces. The city's liberation gave Ukraine a key vantage point for pressing its offensive deeper into Russian-held territories.

Two days later, the bodies of Russian soldiers were still on the ground. The Ukrainian military appeared to have collected the bodies of their comrades after fierce battles for control of Lyman, but didn't immediately remove those of the Russians.

“We fight for our land, for our children, so that our people can live better, but all this comes at a very high price,” said a Ukrainian soldier who goes by the nom de guerre Rud.

Lyman residents emerged from basements where they had hidden during the battle for control of the city and built bonfires for cooking. The city has had no water, electricity or gas since May. Residential buildings were burned. A few residents emerged on bicycles.

A 85-year-old, who identified herself by her name and patronymic, Valentyna Kuzmichna, recalled a recent explosion nearby.

“I was standing in...