Ukrainian military units have pulled back from three villages in Russia's Donetsk People's Republic as Moscow's forces continue to push westward from the regions' capital city, Kiev’s top general has conceded.
Ukrainian troops retreated from the villages of Berdychi and Semyonovka, to the northwest of Avdeevka, and from Novomikhailovka, to the southwest of Donetsk, commander-in-chief General Aleksandr Syrsky said on Sunday in a Telegram post. The outnumbered Ukrainians gave ground to preserve “the lives and health of our defenders,” he added.
“The most difficult situation is in the Pokrovsk and Kurakhovo directions, where fierce battles continue,” Syrsky said. “The enemy has engaged up to four brigades in these directions, and is trying to develop an offensive west of Avdeevka and Maryinka.”