In 2014, pro-Russian separatists invaded and briefly occupied Avdiivka. Ukrainian forces regained control of the city and fortified it, but fighting continued. Violence increased significantly in 2017, creating a humanitarian crisis in the city. Most of it has now been destroyed. Avdiivka's population has fallen from more than 30,000 before the war to about 1,000, the Associated Press reported, citing city officials. The remaining residents live mostly underground, according to Reuters.
Avdiivka has strategic and logistical value for Moscow. The Defense Ministry said on Saturday that capturing Avdiivka would move the front lines of the war away from Donetsk city, making it more difficult for Ukraine to attempt to retake the regional capital.
The withdrawal will also boost Russian morale ahead of the war's second anniversary on February 24 and raise concerns about Ukraine's dwindling military supplies and personnel.
The Institute for War Studies think tank said Russia's advance into Avdiivka highlights the importance of air defense. Russia was able to provide “close air support” to ground forces during the final days of the attack, ISW said.
ISW cited Ukrainian military officials and soldiers as saying that Russian forces fired a large number of glide bombs (modified to glide to their targets rather than fall, making them difficult to shoot down) in parts of the city. He said he did.
“Russia’s ability to carry out large-scale attacks over several days in the most active areas of the frontline suggests that the Ukrainian military could not deny entry into the airspace around Avdiivka,” ISW wrote. Ta. “Russian forces likely used this temporary localized air superiority to facilitate the capture of large parts of the settlement.”
Ukraine's Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said Saturday that the losses in Avdiivka demonstrate the need for advanced air defense systems to prevent the Russian military from using guided bombs.
The comments came as Kiev issued dire warnings of the consequences if its allies do not supply Ukraine with enough ammunition and weapons. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told the Munich Security Conference on Saturday that “keeping Ukraine in an artificial arms shortage…will allow President Putin to adapt to the intensity of the current war.”
It was not immediately clear by Sunday whether there were any Ukrainian troops remaining in Avdiivka or inside a coke and chemical plant that until recently was Ukraine's last stronghold. Late Saturday, Russia's Ministry of Defense announced that it was taking steps to “clear the city of militants and prevent Ukrainian troops who have left the city and settled inside the factory.”
General Oleksandr Tarnavsky, commander of Ukrainian forces in the Donetsk region, said in a statement on Sunday that some Ukrainian soldiers were taken prisoner during the withdrawal, but he did not specify how many. He added that Ukraine will advocate for humane treatment of soldiers through humanitarian organizations and other countries.
What do Ukraine and Russia say?
The withdrawal of Ukrainian troops set off a messaging war between Kiev and Moscow, as Ukrainian authorities sought to interpret the withdrawal positively and Russian officials rushed to frame it as a symbolic victory.
Shirsky, the Ukrainian military commander who was recently appointed to the post, said the withdrawal would allow Kiev to “move to defense on more favorable fronts,” adding that during the operation Ukrainian forces would inflict “serious losses” on Russian troops. “I gave him,” he claimed. Tarnavsky said in a statement on Sunday that more than 1,300 Russian tanks, aircraft, artillery systems and armored vehicles were destroyed between October 10, 2023 and February 17, 2024. The Washington Post could not independently verify this claim.
Zelenskiy said in an interview late Saturday that the decision to withdraw from Avdiivka was “balanced” and helped save the lives of Ukrainian troops.
Meanwhile, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Dmitry Peskov said President Vladimir Putin congratulated his military on “such an important victory and success” in Avdiivka. Peskov said President Putin will personally commend Russian air force personnel who took part in the operation in Avdiivka.
How did the US react?
Ukraine's withdrawal from Avdiivka comes as Congressional Republicans continue to block President Biden's proposed roughly $60 billion aid package.
The White House said in a statement after the phone call between Biden and Zelensky on Saturday that Ukraine's defeat in the city was “the result of Congressional inaction.”
In the call, Biden “stressed the need for Congress to quickly pass additional national security funding legislation to supply Ukraine's military,” the White House said.
Alex Horton, Andrew Jeong, John Hudson and Isabelle Khurshudyan contributed to this report.
