Russian Troops Begin To Retreat In Donetsk Region
- 6.04.2023, 18:31
The Armed Forces of Ukraine are pushing the invaders out from Avdiivka, Vuhledar, and Bakhmut.
Russian troops began to leave their positions in several sectors of the front in the Donetsk region, a source in the grouping of Russian troops in Ukraine told Novaya Gazeta.Europe.
According to the interlocutor of the publication, Russia is withdrawing troops from the “northern ledge” near Avdiivka. Now there are battles for Novoselivka, however, the Ukrainian army so far “rather indicates a presence”, and does not storm this settlement, he noted. At the same time, the “southern ledge” near the village of Vodiane is still controlled by the military of the Russian Federation. They can start retreating in the next two days.
In addition, Russian units abandoned their positions in Vuhledar, a Novaya Gazeta.Europe source said. “There is now a gray zone ten kilometers deep. The RF Armed Forces are retreating to Volnovakha,” he added.
Russian troops are still holding the front in Marinka, but there are few personnel left there. In Bakhmut, the Armed Forces of Ukraine began “taking back the quarters in the center previously taken by the Wagnerites,” the source says. According to him, the Ukrainian military is moving slowly but successfully. “Apparently, the Russian armed forces north and south of Bakhmut are preparing to withdraw,” he concludes.
Leaving positions means the end of the Russian offensive. Russian troops have exhausted their offensive potential and switched to defense, Oleksandr Musienko, head of the Center for Military Legal Research, told the publication. According to him, the activity of the Russian army in many sectors of the front has decreased.
“Although bloody confrontation continues in the areas of Bakhmut and Avdiivka, the intensity of the fighting has noticeably decreased. Ukrainian troops in some areas are carefully pushing the enemy back and moving deeper into their positions,” he said.
Russia will probably begin to use artillery not for an offensive, but for deterring the Armed Forces of Ukraine. “The Russian Federation still has a certain number of shells,” he concludes.
The fact that the winter-spring offensive of the Russian army did not achieve its goals was previously stated by the American Institute for the Study of War (ISW). Moscow's offensive operations around Bakhmut, along the Svatove-Kreminna line, on the Avdiivka-Donetsk and Vuhledar fronts did not bring significant success. Russia never captured the Donetsk and Luhansk regions within the administrative boundaries.
The British Ministry of Defense also noted that the head of the Russian General Staff Valery Gerasimov, who led the grouping of troops in Ukraine at the end of January, was unable to expand Russia's control over the Donbas and achieved only minor success by spending personnel from mobilized Russians.
The day before, Reuters reported that Ukraine had trained 40,000 recruits for assault squads for a counteroffensive. It could begin in the coming weeks or months, interlocutors among the Ukrainian military told the agency.