UK Defense Ministry: Russia tacitly acknowledges its forces are unlikely to seize Zaporizhzhia

Russia's decision to make Melitopol the "temporary" capital of the illegal occupation administration in Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia Oblast may indicate that Russian forces are highly unlikely to seize planned major objectives, including the city of Zaporizhzhia, in the near future, the U.K. Defense Ministry said in its daily update on March 19.

Melitopol was declared the temporary capital in early March, and Russia has never occupied the city of Zaporizhzhia, the capital of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia Oblast and a major industrial center in southeastern Ukraine. 

Zaporizhzhia is among the four oblasts Russian dictator Vladimir Putin claimed to have annexed after sham referendums in September 2022.