Russian forces have advanced further westafter taking control of the Ukrainian city of Avdeevka, the Defense Ministry said on Friday, as quoted by Reuters.
According to the ministry statement, Russian forces have also destroyed a number of Western-supplied Ukrainian weapons over the past weekincluding seven delivered from Great Britain Storm Shadow cruise missilesan American anti-aircraft guided missile and launch vehicle Patriot and 42 HIMARS missiles, launched by multiple launch systems.
The fronts in the war, which began two years ago on Saturday, have not shifted significantly since late 2022, before the capture of Avdeyevka, and Russia still controls just under a fifth of Ukrainian territory.
The capture of Avdeyevka, after months of fighting with heavy casualties on both sides, was Russia’s first significant victory since the capture of the town of Bakhmut last May.
After the capture of Avdeevka, parts of the group of Russian forces “Center” “continued to advance in a westerly direction”the Ministry of Defense said in a statement.
“In interaction with aviation and artillery they destroyed gatherings of manpower and equipment of the Ukrainian armed forces” in six nearby settlements, the announcement said.
Zelensky downplays Avdeevka’s loss, seeks faster support
The president acknowledged that finding an alternative to US support would not be easy.
2024-02-23 14:23:30
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