Ukraine withdraws troops from Avdiivka as Russian forces close in

KYIV: Ukrainian troops have withdrawn from the frontline city of Avdiivka to avoid being encircled, new military chief Oleksandr Syrsky said yesterday, handing Russia its biggest symbolic victory following Kyiv’s failed summer counter-offensive.

Russia has been trying to capture Avdiivka for months. It is the most significant territorial gain for Russian forces since they seized the city of Bakhmut last May and comes ahead of the second anniversary of the start of the invasion.

“I decided to withdraw our units from the city and switch to defence on more favourable lines,” Syrsky said on Facebook.

“Our soldiers performed their duty with dignity, did everything possible to destroy the best Russian military units and inflicted significant losses on the enemy.”

It is Syrsky’s first major decision since his appointment on Feb 8 and he said it was taken to preserve the lives of soldiers and prevent their encirclement.

Ukraine faces mounting pressure on the eastern front because of ammunition shortages, with a US$60 billion American military aid package held up in Washington since last year by congressional wrangling.

General Oleksandr Tarnavsky, who commands the Avdiivka area, said of the withdrawal: “This is the right decision. Encirclement was prevented, personnel were withdrawn, and our soldiers took up defence at the designated lines.”

Before issuing orders to pull out of Avdiivka, he on Friday said several Ukrainian soldiers had been captured by Russian forces.

The battle for the industrial hub, less than 10km north of the Russian-controlled city of Donetsk, has been one of the bloodiest of the two-year war. Many compare it to the battle for Bakhmut, in which tens of thousands of soldiers were killed.

Avdiivka had about 34,000 inhabitants before the Russian invasion. Most of the city has been since destroyed but around 1,000 residents remain, according to local authorities. It has important symbolic value, and Moscow hopes its capture will make Ukraine’s bombing of Donetsk harder.

The fall of Avdiivka comes as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is on a tour of Europe to secure desperately needed military aid.

On Friday he signed bilateral security pacts with France and Germany to lock in support for Kyiv in its battle against Russia.