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Avdiivka was on the front lines of war between Kyiv and Moscow for almost a decade. Fierce fighting raged there for months following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine nearly two years ago.
The withdrawal was far less drawn out. When the Ukrainian military abandoned the town on Saturday, handing Russia its most important victory in months, it was rapid and ruthless.
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Large numbers of Russian troops are attacking Avdiivka in east Ukraine from all directions, and the situation is increasingly difficult for Ukrainian troops defending the town, its mayor said on Thursday.
Russian forces have taken the initiative on the eastern front in the industrial Donbas region of Ukraine and have been trying to cut supply lines and encircle Ukrainian forces dug in at Avdiivka since October.
The Russian Defense Ministry announced on Sunday that its forces have taken control of the village of Krokhmalne in Ukraine’s Kharkiv region. A Ukrainian military spokesman subsequently confirmed that Kyiv’s forces had withdrawn from the area, marking a small but noteworthy advance for Russian forces.
The latest territorial gain follows a similar claim made on Thursday by the Russian Defense Ministry, stating that its forces had seized control of the settlement named Vesele in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region. As Russia continues to exert offensive pressure in eastern Ukrainian towns like Kupiansk, Lyman, and Avdiivka, the territorial gains have been modest, with the conflict showing signs of escalation.
Ukraine has carried out a major air offensive on Russia’s border regions, a day after Moscow launched its biggest wave of airstrikes on Kyiv and other Ukrainian regions since the war began.
The Ukrainian armed forces posted a video on Telegram depicting the sky above Belgorod, showing at least one building on fire.
Ukraine’s commander-in-chief said on Tuesday his forces had pulled back to the outskirts of the town of Maryinka, a day after Moscow claimed full control of the key town.
“We have now moved to the outskirts of Maryinka, and in some places already beyond the boundaries of the settlement,” Valerii Zaluzhnyi told reporters in Kyiv.