Neighbouring city of Lysychansk could fall within days as Russia continues slow advance in Donbas
The last Ukrainian forces fighting in the heavily contested eastern city of Sievierodonetsk have been ordered to withdraw in order to avoid being encircled, as fears grow that the neighbouring city of Lysychansk could also fall toThe anticipated loss of Sievierodonetsk is the latest battlefield reverse for Kyiv after its defeat in the port city of Mariupol. According to some estimates about 12,000 civilians remain in Sievierodonetsk, out of a prewar population of 160,000.
Russians were also advancing toward Lysychansk from Zolote and Toshkivka, and Russian reconnaissance units had been conducting forays on the city edges but were driven out by its defenders, he added. “Our forces had to withdraw and conduct a tactical retreat because there was essentially nothing left there to defend. There was no city left there and, secondly, we could not allow them to be encircled,” said Oleksander Musiyenko, a Kyiv-based military analyst.
Maria Zolkina, a political analyst at the Ilko Kucheriv Democratic Initiatives Foundation in Kyiv, tweeted that the defence of Sievierodonetsk has served Ukraine’s objectives, but now was the right time to pull back. “Russian offensive operations will likely stall in the coming weeks, whether or not Russian forces capture the Sievierodonetsk-Lysychansk area, likely granting Ukrainian forces the opportunity to launch prudent counteroffensives,” the ISW predicted.terrain captured by Russian forces is a loss, but the battle of Sievierodonetsk will not be a decisive Russian victory.”
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