The Ukrainian army announced on Sunday that it had thwarted a Russian attack on the flank after it withdrew from the destroyed town of Avdiivka in the east of the country on Saturday.
“The defense forces thwarted a Russian attack in Zaporizhya yesterday (Saturday),” the Ukrainian army said on the Telegram messaging app.
Reuters reported that Sirsky had destroyed 18 armored vehicles, including three tanks, and that the Russians “retired to their previous positions.”
There has been no comment yet from the Russian side.
Ukrainian counterattacks were focused on the southern region of Zaporizhya in the summer of 2023, but this did not achieve tangible results and only a few residential areas were liberated.
Russia announces its forces’ complete control over Avdiivka
Earlier on Saturday, Ukrainian Army Commander Oleksandr Sirsky said that Ukrainian forces had withdrawn from Avdiivka so as not to be subjected to a complete siege by Russian forces after months of intense fighting, which paves the way for the largest Russian advance since May 2023 when Moscow seized the city. Bakhmut city.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said at the Munich Security Conference that the withdrawal from Avdiivka was “a fair decision to save as many lives as possible.”
He added, “To avoid being surrounded, we decided to withdraw along other lines. This does not mean that the people retreated a few kilometers and that Russia seized something. It did not capture anything.”
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For his part, Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated his army on the “important victory” represented by controlling the city of Avdiivka.
Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, according to what was reported by Russian news agencies, “Vladimir Putin listened in the Kremlin to Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu’s report on the control of Avdiivka. The president congratulated our soldiers and fighters on this important victory.”
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2024-02-18 10:09:38
