Battle of Kherson | |||||||
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Part of the southern Ukraine campaign of the Russian invasion of Ukraine | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Russia | Ukraine | ||||||
Units involved | |||||||
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Casualties and losses | |||||||
1 Su-25 aircraft 1 Mi-24 helicopter Per Ukraine: Heavy |
Per Ukraine: ~300 soldiers and civilians killed |
The battle of Kherson was a battle between Russian and Ukrainian forces that began on 24 February 2022 as part of the southern Ukraine campaign of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[4] The battle ended on 2 March 2022 with the capture of the city of Kherson and a pocket of land on the right bank of the Dnieper river by Russian forces.[5] Russia began a military occupation of the area.
The battle of Kherson was a major defeat for Ukraine; Kherson was the first major city, and the only regional capital, to be captured by Russian forces during the invasion.[6][7] Russian forces also took the city without much resistance, which has been widely attributed to treachery on the part of several local officials.
Battle
Initial Russian attacks
On 24 February, Russian forces invaded Kherson Oblast from the south through Crimea, with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy saying: "Our troops are fighting fierce battles near the outskirts of Kherson, the enemy is pressing from the occupied Crimea, trying to advance towards Melitopol."[8]
At 4:30 a.m., Russian forces began shelling Kherson International Airport with Kalibr missiles in an attempt to destroy Ukrainian helicopters. The Ukrainian military was, however, aware of the Russian invasion ahead of time and had moved the helicopters away from the airport. At approximately 10:00 a.m., Russian troops entered Nova Kakhovka, briefly capturing the city, with the Russian flag being hung on the roof of the Kakhovka Dam. Around 11:00 a.m., Russian forces disembarked from helicopters around the Antonivka Bridge as well as the towns of Antonivka, and Sadove.[9] Later in the day, Russian forces reached the city of Kherson and captured the Antonivka Bridge,[10][11] which is a strategic crossing over the Dnieper River, and provided a route towards the junction city of Mykolaiv.[12] The Kherson Territorial Defense Forces, units of the 59th Infantry Brigade, and the 80th separate amphibious assault brigade managed to knock out the Russian landing force and hold positions under the Antonivka Bridge, which enabled the Ukrainian military to escape from a brief encirclement.[9] At the end of the day, Russian troops had captured several towns in the region including Henichesk, Skadovsk, Kakhovka, Nova Kakhovka, Tavriisk, as well as the Kakhovka Dam and the North Crimean Canal. The head of the Kherson State Administration, Hennadiy Lahuta, left the city of Kherson on the first day of the war. The mayor of Kherson, Ihor Kolykhaiev, remained in the city.[9]
By the early hours of 25 February, Ukrainian forces recaptured the bridge in a battle that was described as fierce and left dead soldiers and several destroyed military vehicles lying on the bridge.[11][13][14] The counterattack forced the Russians to push north and capture the next closest crossing of the Dnieper, the city of Nova Kakhovka.[15][16] Russian troops once again seized the Antonivka Bridge later in the day.[17] The Institute for the Study of War assessed that Russian forces fully captured Kherson the same day.[18]
Ukrainian counterattack
Ukraine retook Kherson on 26 February.[19] According to a Tweet by the Kyiv Independent, Mayor Kolykhaiev stated that Russian forces pulled back from Kherson after a Ukrainian air strike on Russian armored vehicles, allowing the city to remain under Ukrainian control.[20][21] A Ukrainian official, Anton Herashchenko, later claimed that a Russian army column was defeated by Ukrainian forces near the town of Oleshky, just south of Kherson.[22] Ukrainian air defense shot down a Russian Su-25 and Mi-24 on the 26th as well.[23]
On the morning of 27 February, the Russian Ministry of Defence stated that Russian forces had encircled Kherson and, according to Ukrainian officials, captured a part of the city, including the airport.[24][25][26] Later in the morning, the Ukrainian Air Force allegedly conducted a successful drone strike against Russian forces in the town of Chornobaivka, just to the north of Kherson.[27]
Encirclement and Russian victory
On 28 February, Russian troops completely encircled Kherson. Later the same day, they entered the village of Zymivnyk from the Kherson International Airport in Chornobaivka.[28][29] In the early morning of 1 March, Ukrainian officials stated that Russian forces had launched a renewed assault on Kherson and were advancing from Kherson International Airport to the highway between Kherson and Mykolaiv. While conducting heavy shelling, Russian forces surrounded the city and reached the highway, advancing to the village of Komyshany before establishing a checkpoint.[30][31] Russian forces entered Kherson later in the day.[32]
At around 10:00 a.m., more than 40 Ukrainian soldiers of the 194th Bilozerka Battalion of the 124th Territorial Defense Brigade went to Lilac Park, in the shipping district of Kherson.[33] Located near Lilac Park is the Kherson Oil Refinery. The Ukrainian military expected only light Russian infantry to be present in Lilac Park. When they arrived, however, the Russian military was fully present, with tanks and armored vehicles.[34][33] At around 11:00 a.m., a 20–30 minute engagement took place between Russian and Ukrainian soldiers at the park. The engagement left at least 24 Ukrainian soldiers killed, with the Russian military "finishing off" any wounded Ukrainian soldiers found after the battle.[34][33] Only one Russian soldier was killed during the engagement.[34] Some of the Ukrainian soldiers who survived the battle retreated to the oil refinery and later left it.[33]
In the early morning of 2 March, Kolykhaiev reported that Russian forces captured a railway station and the Kherson River Port.[35] Later in the morning, Russian forces were seen at Svobody Square in central Kherson, where the Kherson Regional Administration building is located.[30] Later in the day, a group of about ten Russian officers, including a commander, entered the city council building where Kolykhaiev was.[36] That evening, Kolykhaiev announced that he had surrendered the city and that the Russian commander intended to set up a military administration.[36] Kolykhaiev acknowledged the Ukrainian military was no longer present in Kherson, and another official stated the Russian military was in all parts of the city.[5][37]
Aftermath
After capturing Kherson, Russia began a military occupation of the city and surrounding region.[38][39] They used force to suppress protests by the local population.[40][41] On 22 March, the Ukrainian government warned that Kherson was facing a "humanitarian catastrophe" as the city was running out of food and medical supplies. It accused Russia of blocking evacuation of civilians to Ukraine-controlled territory.[42][43] The Russian forces were reported to have committed human rights violations against the populace, including torture and arbitrary detentions.[44][45]
On 23 March, Ukrainian forces launched counterattacks against Russian forces in Kherson Oblast.[46][47] A senior US defense official claimed that the Russian forces no longer had full control of Kherson as the Ukrainians fought "fiercely" to recover the city. CNN, however, reported the situation in the city remained unchanged, citing residents confirming Kherson was under full Russian control.[48] Ukrainians in Kherson also "questioned the Pentagon’s assessment, saying that the city remained in Russian hands".[49][50]
Casualties and war crimes
According to Kolykhaiev, speaking immediately after the battle, the fighting led to the deaths of around 300 Ukrainian soldiers and civilians, and severe destruction of the city's infrastructure.[36] He said that bodies were being buried in mass graves, and that many remains were unrecognizable.[36][51] Kolykhaiev described the impact on citizens in the city, stating that many remained in their homes and in bomb shelters during the battle. He claimed that schools and tower blocks had been damaged by the fighting, and that residential buildings had been fired upon by Russian forces. Kolykhaiev claimed that on 1 March, Russian soldiers shot citizens who were armed with Molotov cocktails.[35]
On 25 February, the Ukrainian Prosecutor General, Iryna Venediktova, claimed that Russian forces murdered a journalist and an ambulance driver near Kherson. Venediktova stated that Ukrainian law enforcement had opened criminal proceedings into the shootings.[52] Ukrainian officials alleged that beginning on 27 February, Russian forces began moving civilians from nearby villages towards Kherson, attempting to use them as human shields.[53]
The Ukrainian government reported that Russia had taken "heavy losses" during the battle.[17] In May 2022, Valentyna Romanova, a writer for the European Consortium for Political Research, published that Ukraine sustained 300 military losses during the battle, with the entire Ukrainian defense force at Kherson being shot and killed amid the fighting.[54]
Analysis
Treachery and collaboration
In November 2023, Gilbert W. Merkx, a professor at Duke University, along with the United States Marine Corps University, published an article in the Journal of Advanced Military Studies and in Project Muse, that stated Russia had captured Kherson with "little resistance". Merkx stated that Russia planned and attempted to execute an amphibious landing assault on Kherson as a second offensive axis, but was stopped by the Ukrainian coastal defenses in the early stages of the invasion.[55]
Questions about how Kherson was captured so easily have been asked.[56][57][58] Orysia Lutsevych, a member of the Chatham House think tank stated that "...Russia had its agents infiltrated into the Ukrainian security forces...".[57] On 1 April 2022, Zelenskyy dismissed the head of the SBU's Kherson regional branch and a general as traitors. Zelenskyy described their actions as that of "anti-heroes", and that he "...had trouble determining where their Fatherland is".[57][56] An aide to one of the generals was arrested for handing over maps of minefields to Russian forces and helping coordinate Russian airstrikes in the region.[56][57]
Significance
El País described the battle as "Ukraine’s worst defeat in the war".[59] Kherson also has symbolic significance, as it was the first major city and the only oblast capital captured by Russian forces during the full-scale invasion.[36][60] Strategically, Kherson has been described by analysts as "a gateway to Crimea", and offers control of the Dnieper river to the side that controls it.[60] On 2 March, just after Kherson was captured, there was a measured spike in bots on Twitter (now 𝕏) in pro-Russian hashtags, including #IStandWithPutin.[61] On 4 March, there was a measured spike in bots promoting the pro-Ukrainian hashtag #IStandWithUkraine, which the Australian University of Adelaide believed to have been Ukrainian authorities countering Russian authorities in propaganda.[61]
See also
References
- ↑ "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, February 25, 2022". Critical Threats. 25 February 2022. Archived from the original on 26 February 2022. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
- 1 2 "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, February 25, 2022". Archived from the original on 26 February 2022. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
- ↑ Schwirtz, Michael (6 March 2022). "Proud Band of Ukrainian Troops Holds Russian Assault at Bay—for Now". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 9 March 2022. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
- ↑ Ainsworth, Richard (23 February 2023). "The Powerful Imagery that Defines Ukraine : A nation grieving yet resilient" (Article). The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 20 November 2023. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
Russia had captured the area during the Battle of Kherson in the first week of the 2022 invasion.
- 1 2 Staff of the Associated Press (4 March 2022). "Russia-Ukraine War: What to know on Russia's war in Ukraine". AP News. Associated Press. Archived from the original on 18 November 2023. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
Russian forces have captured the southern city of Kherson, a vital Black Sea port of 280,000—the first major city to fall.
- ↑ Lawrence, Christopher A. (2023). The Battle for Kyiv: The Fight for Ukraine's Capital. Croydon, England: Frontline Books. pp. 114–119. ISBN 978-1-39904-848-4.
Kherson was the only regional capital captured by Russia in the first eighteen months of this war.
- ↑ Craeghs, Esra; Wouters, Jan (2023). "The prosecution of Putin before the International Criminal Court". Hasselt University, KU Leuven & Maastricht University (Theses and Dissertations). Hasselt University: 25. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
… the first city to fall following Russia's invasion was the city of Kherson.
- ↑ "Most Problematic Situation In South, Fierce Battles Taking Place Near Kherson –Zelenskyy". ukranews_com. 24 February 2022. Archived from the original on 25 February 2022. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
- 1 2 3 БРАТУЩАК, ОЛЕКСІЙ; РЄУЦЬКИЙ, КОСТЯНТИН (8 March 2023). "Битва за Херсон. Історія останніх захисників міста". Ukrainska Pravda. Archived from the original on 17 November 2023. Retrieved 17 November 2023.
- ↑ Schwirtz, Michael; Schmitt, Eric; MacFarquhar, Neil (25 February 2022). "Russia Batters Ukraine With Artillery Strikes as West Condemns Invasion". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 25 February 2022. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
- 1 2 "Battle rages for strategic bridge in southern Ukraine after days of fighting". 26 February 2022. Archived from the original on 26 February 2022. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
- ↑ "Російські війська хочуть прорватися до Миколаєва, йдуть бої в околицях Чернігова". Українська правда (in Ukrainian). Archived from the original on 25 February 2022. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
- ↑ "Імовірність прориву на Миколаїв знизилася: військові відстояли Антонівський міст". www.ukrinform.ua (in Ukrainian). 25 February 2022. Archived from the original on 25 February 2022. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
- ↑ Video: See aftermath of battle over key bridge in Ukraine –CNN Video, archived from the original on 26 February 2022, retrieved 25 February 2022
- ↑ "Russian troops moving towards town of Nova Kakhovka in Kherson Oblast". The Kyiv Independent. 24 February 2022. Archived from the original on 24 February 2022. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
- ↑ "Soldiers Raise the Russian Flag Over Ukraine Power Plant". GreekReporter.com. 24 February 2022. Archived from the original on 24 February 2022. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
- 1 2 "Ukraine Loses Control over Crossing to Kherson". www.ukrinform.net. 25 February 2022. Archived from the original on 25 February 2022. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
- ↑ "RUSSIA-UKRAINE WARNING UPDATE: RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, FEBRUARY 25, 2022". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
- ↑ "RUSSIA-UKRAINE WARNING UPDATE: RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, FEBRUARY 26". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
- ↑ "⚡️Kherson mayor: City under Ukrainian control. After an aircraft attack on Russian armored vehicles, the enemy forces backed off from the city. Mayor Ihor Kolykhaiev said trolleybuses were operating, the food situation was "being resolved."" (Post on 𝕏 (Formerly Twitter)). 𝕏 (Formerly Twitter). Kyiv, Ukraine: The Kyiv Independent. 26 February 2022. Archived from the original on 28 September 2022. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
- ↑ "Херсон наш: на линии вышли троллейбусы, водоснабжение в обычном режиме, в бомбоубежищах родились двое малышей | Новости Одессы". dumskaya.net. Archived from the original on 26 February 2022. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
- ↑ "Column of Russian occupiers defeated in Kherson region –Interior Ministry". www.ukrinform.net. 26 February 2022. Archived from the original on 27 February 2022. Retrieved 27 February 2022.
- ↑ "RUSSIA-UKRAINE WARNING UPDATE: RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, FEBRUARY 27". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
- ↑ "Russia Claims to Have besieged Ukraine's Kherson, Berdyansk". Daily Sabah. 27 February 2022. Archived from the original on 27 February 2022. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
- ↑ Sabbagh, Dan (27 February 2022). "Russian Forces advance on Kyiv: Fighting on fourth day of invasion". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 27 February 2022. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
- ↑ "Russia says it "Blocks" Ukraine's Kherson, Berdyansk –RIA". Reuters. 27 February 2022. Archived from the original on 28 February 2022. Retrieved 1 March 2022.
- ↑ "Ukraine's Air Force claims successful drone strike on Russian forces near Kherson". CNN. 28 February 2022. Archived from the original on 28 February 2022. Retrieved 1 March 2022.
- ↑ "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, February 28, 2022". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
- ↑ "Херсон: від 24 лютого до 11 листопада 2022 року — історія протистояння, окупації та звільнення". Nyzhni Sirohozy (in Ukrainian). 12 November 2022. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
- 1 2 "Russian Military Vehicles seen Across Kherson after Heavy Shelling". CNN. 1 March 2022. Archived from the original on 2 March 2022. Retrieved 2 March 2022.
- ↑ Tamila Ivanova (1 March 2022). "Шостий день вторгнення РФ: ситуація на Херсонщині. ТЕКСТОВА ТРАНСЛЯЦІЯ". Suspilne (in Ukrainian). Archived from the original on 2 March 2022. Retrieved 1 March 2022.
- ↑ "Russian Forces Have Entered Kherson, says Ukrainian Official". Reuters. 1 March 2022. Archived from the original on 2 March 2022. Retrieved 2 March 2022.
- 1 2 3 4 БРАТУЩАК, ОЛЕКСІЙ; РЄУЦЬКИЙ, КОСТЯНТИН (8 March 2022). "Подвиг у Бузковому парку. Невідома історія окупації Херсона" (in Ukrainian). Ukrainska Pravda. Archived from the original on 17 November 2023. Retrieved 17 November 2023.
- 1 2 3 Іванців, Анастасія (24 August 2023). "За Херсон до останнього. Історія подвигу та загибелі оборонців Бузкового парку" (in Ukrainian). Suspilne. Archived from the original on 17 November 2023. Retrieved 17 November 2023.
- 1 2 Eugene Shaporenko (2 March 2022). "У Херсоні ворог захопив залізничний вокзал та річковий порт". Fakty i Kommentarii (in Ukrainian). Archived from the original on 2 March 2022. Retrieved 2 March 2022.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Schwirtz, Michael; Pérez-Peña, Richard (2 March 2022). "First Ukraine City Falls as Russia Strikes More Civilian Targets". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 3 March 2022. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
- ↑ York, Evan (31 March 2023). "Classical Realism and Ukraine: Constructing the Causes". European Journal of Law and Political Science. Florida State University. 2 (2): 29–35. doi:10.24018/ejpolitics.2023.2.2.73.
This quick decapitation attempt failed as Ukrainians proved both far less supportive of the Russians than expected and far more capable as a military force. Nonetheless, Russian forces struck far into the country, managing to capture the oblast capital of Kherson and surround the historically important port of Mariupol.
- ↑ Kaparulin, Yurii (30 May 2023). "Eyewitness Account of the Nazi Occupation in the South of Ukraine: Diary of a Kherson Resident". Eastern European Holocaust Studies. De Gruyter Oldenbourg. 1 (1): 215–239. doi:10.1515/eehs-2023-0018. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
On February 24, 2022, the Russian army launched a full-scale invasion on Ukraine. Military units assembled in the South entered Kherson from the temporarily occupied territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. The Russian army established control over the city on March 2, after weeklong skirmishes approaching the city. Over the nine months that followed, Kherson was under Russian occupation until its liberation by the Armed Forces of Ukraine on November 11, 2022.
- ↑ Landry, Carole (27 July 2022). "The Battle for Kherson" (News article). The New York Times. Archived from the original on 29 December 2023. Retrieved 29 December 2023.
Kherson was the first Ukrainian city to fall to Russian forces. Since March, the port city and its surrounding region have been a key beachhead, from which Russian forces continuously launch attacks.
- ↑ "Russian soldiers fire on Kherson protesters". BBC News. Archived from the original on 23 March 2022. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
- ↑ "Ukraine says Russian forces violently disperse Kherson protest". Al Jazeera. Archived from the original on 23 March 2022. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
- ↑ Zinets, Natalia; Prentice, Alessandra (22 March 2022). Heritage, Timothy (ed.). "Ukraine says 300,000 people are running out of food in occupied Kherson". Reuters. Archived from the original on 22 March 2022. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
- ↑ "Medicine shortages and Russian army searches: life in occupied Kherson". France 24. 31 March 2022. Retrieved 7 April 2022.
- ↑ "Russian military abducts, tortures people in Kherson region". www.ukrinform.net. 4 April 2022. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
- ↑ Davies, Caroline (31 May 2022). "Ukraine war: Stories of torture emerging out of Kherson". BBC News.
- ↑ Williams, Nathan; Waterhouse, James (23 March 2022). "Ukraine changes the narrative". BBC News. Archived from the original on 23 March 2022. Retrieved 24 March 2022.
- ↑ Williams, Nathan (23 March 2022). "Where are Ukrainian Forces Fighting Back?". BBC News. Archived from the original on 23 March 2022. Retrieved 24 March 2022.
- ↑ Cooper, Helene (25 March 2022). "Russia is not in full control of Kherson anymore, the Pentagon says". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 27 March 2022. Retrieved 25 March 2022.
- ↑ Cooper, Helene (25 March 2022). "Conflicting reports emerge on whether Russia is still in full control of Kherson". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 27 March 2022. Retrieved 25 March 2022.
- ↑ "Russian Military Remains in Full Control of City of Kherson, Residents say". CNN. 25 March 2022. Archived from the original on 26 March 2022. Retrieved 25 March 2022.
- ↑ James, Liam (3 March 2022). "Russian Claims it has seized Kherson as City's Mayor Agrees to Curfew". The Independent. Archived from the original on 3 March 2022. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
- ↑ "Journalist shot Dead by Russian Occupiers in Kherson Region". www.ukrinform.net. 27 February 2022. Archived from the original on 27 February 2022. Retrieved 27 February 2022.
- ↑ "Russian Invaders Plan to use Kherson Residents as Human Shield". www.ukrinform.net. 28 February 2022. Archived from the original on 1 March 2022. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
- ↑ Romanova, Valentyna (May 2022). "Ukraine's resilience to Russia's military invasion in the context of the decentralisation reform". ResearchGate. Stefan Batory Foundation. doi:10.13140/RG.2.2.32756.83840. Retrieved 8 December 2023.
The example of the territorial defence in Kherson, in southern Ukraine, is probably the most telling. The Ukrainian armed forces had been protecting Kherson oblast since the Russian invasion, but they were defeated on 2 March 2022. Still, the territorial defence unit – up to 300 military personnel – continued to defend the city when the Russian army entered Kherson in tanks. The entire Kherson territorial defence unit was shot in battle by the invaders.
- ↑ Merkx, Gilbert W. (November 2023). "Russia's War in Ukraine: Two Decisive Factors". Journal of Advanced Military Studies. Marine Corps University and Project Muse. 14 (2): 13–33. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
The Russian spearhead north toward Kherson and Melitopol from Crimea was more successful. Russian jets took out the Ukrainian air defenses in this area. Both Kherson and Melitopol were captured with little resistance, and the larger city of Mariupol was largely encircled.
- 1 2 3 Associated Press / CNBC staff (18 December 2022). "The Rapid Fall of Kherson : A key Ukrainian city leaves unanswered questions". CNBC. Associated Press (AP). Archived from the original on 19 November 2023. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
- 1 2 3 4 "Kherson's Rapid Fall at Start of Russian Invasion leaves Unanswered Questions". Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). Retrieved 19 November 2023.
- ↑ "Ukrainians question the Ease of Russian Capture of Kherson". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
- ↑ Segura, Cristian (25 October 2022). "Russian troops preparing for urban combat in Kherson as Ukrainian army advances". Retrieved 5 December 2023.
- 1 2 "Ukraine war: Why is control of Kherson so important?". 8 November 2022. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
- 1 2 Smart, Bridget; Watt, Joshua; Benedetti, Sara; Mitchell, Lewis; Roughan, Matthew (12 October 2022). "#IStandWithPutin versus #IStandWithUkraine: The interaction of bots and humans in discussion of the Russia/Ukraine war". International Conference on Social Informatics. University of Adelaide via Springer Nature. 2022: 34–53. Retrieved 7 December 2023.