Withdrawal of Ukrainian troops: “Avdiivka no longer exists”

The former industrial city of Avdiivka lies in ruins. Russian units have moved into the almost completely destroyed Ukrainian city. And new battles are also being reported from the surrounding area.

A video is said to show Ukrainian soldiers leaving Avdiivka. It was released by the third assault brigade. She had provided support to enable the withdrawal. Nevertheless, in the course of the Ukrainian withdrawal, according to the army leadership, its own soldiers fell into Russian hands. The Ukrainians were in danger of being surrounded. And to save their lives, the withdrawal was the right thing to do, wrote army chief Oleksandr Sirksy on the X platform and on Facebook.

President and Commander-in-Chief Volodymyr Selenkskyj made similar statements at the Munich Security Conference. Zelensky said the withdrawal was a professional decision, but one that did not mean any advantage for the Russian side. Russia destroyed lives, villages and cities in Ukraine and killed tens of thousands of its own soldiers.

Russian invaders continue to advance

After the Ukrainian troops withdrew from the city of Avdiivka and now have to stabilize the front lines, the Russian army claims to be occupying the former industrial city and the extensive coal factory.

Avdiivka is only a few kilometers away from Donetsk and so the regional capital, which has been occupied by Russia since 2014, has moved a little more out of the reach of the Ukrainian army. In terms of drones, glide bombs, aircraft and soldiers, Russia has an overwhelming numerical superiority and, according to Ukrainian information, the attackers are advancing further west.

Ukraine does not publish death figures

The focus recently was on the small town of Lastochkine. The Russian side is actively trying to take it, said the spokesman for the Ukrainian military command, Tavria Dymtro Lichovy, on Ukrainian television. The Ukrainian soldiers had to fend off fierce attacks there. “There were a lot of fighting and enemy attacks from the Avdiivka direction and the enemy is actively trying to take the village of Lastochkine. 14 attacks were counted there,” Lykhovy said. The Russian side suffered enormous losses, not only at Avdiivka.

Since the beginning of the year up to and including February 16, more than 20,000 Russian soldiers have been killed and a lot of military technology has been destroyed, including around 200 tanks. The Russian attackers advanced over the corpses of their own soldiers, wrote Brigadier General Oleksandr Tarnawskyj on Telegram.

The Ukrainian side does not publish official figures. How many Ukrainian soldiers were killed in the fighting for Avdiivka or in total since the beginning of the major Russian invasion can only be estimated. One thing is certain: there are many.

Mobilization is an issue in Ukrainian domestic politics

In the long term, Ukrainian men are needed in the army. Mobilization is a correspondingly important topic and a critical point in Ukrainian domestic policy. Parliament and the government have been vigorously debating a new mobilization law for weeks.

Maria Zolkina is responsible for conflict and security issues at the think tank “Ilko Kucheriv” ​​and is a fellow at the London School of Economics. In conversation with the ARD studio Kyiv she calls for an open, honest debate. “Mobilization should be a topic that the official authorities should finally communicate consciously and honestly,” said Zolkina.

“Perhaps it would be time to talk about Ukraine’s losses in the war, starting from today. Perhaps it is not beneficial for the country’s political authorities to talk about the real losses, but perhaps it could encourage dialogue bring society to a level where adults talk to adults,” said Zolkina.

Zelensky: “Russia had more weapons”

A view that practically no one in Ukraine publicly represents. The conventional wisdom is that the death toll could demotivate and benefit Russia, its enemy. Meanwhile, President Zelensky said at the Munich Security Conference that Avdiivka would be retaken. However, he emphasized again that Russia simply has more weapons and that Ukraine urgently needs, among other things, long-range weapons, modern anti-aircraft defenses and more artillery ammunition.

Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umjerov also commented on this. He wrote on Facebook that the lesson from Avdiivka was that Ukraine needed more modern anti-aircraft defenses so that the enemy could no longer use glide bombs. These, among other things, had caused enormous problems for the Ukrainian army.

The people of Ukraine are more than painfully aware of the lack of modern weapons. Many had expected that the Russian invaders would also be able to take Avdiivka, but the withdrawal from there caused great dejection.

Last civilians evacuated

The fall of the former industrial city to the Russian invaders is important from Moscow’s perspective, because it is the first time since May 2023 that a Ukrainian city has been taken, which was also much better fortified than Bakhmut. The city in the Donetsk region was also only occupied by Russia after months of fighting – or more precisely, what was left of it.

The former industrial city of Avdiivka is now in ruins. Shortly before the final decision to withdraw, the Ukrainian army evacuated what it said were the last remaining civilians from the ruins of Avdiivka. Representatives of the Ukrainian army filmed a Ukrainian woman who appeared almost hysterical at the sight of the destruction: “I was born and grew up here. It’s a pure nightmare, why are we being punished like this?” The soldier at the wheel could hardly calm the crying woman. “Yes,” he said, appearing comparatively composed: “Awdivka no longer exists.”