Stand behind Ukrainian independent journalism when it’s needed most. Help us reach 20,000 members.

Skip to content
Edit post

Ukraine's military: Avdiivka may soon become 'second Bakhmut'

by The Kyiv Independent news desk March 20, 2023 8:49 PM 2 min read
This audio is created with AI assistance

Russian forces are trying to surround the city of Avdiivka in eastern Donetsk Oblast, Ukrainian military spokesperson Oleksii Dmytrashkivskyi said on March 20, adding it could soon become "the second Bakhmut."

"However, not everything is so good within the Russian units carrying out attacks in this area," Dmytrashkivskyi said on national television, as cited by Ukrainska Pravda. "Over the past day, the enemy has lost about three companies of personnel there."

According to Dmytrashkivskyi, who heads the united press center of the Tavriskiy direction of Ukrainian defense forces, Russia's assaults on Avdiivka are identical and predictable as its troops attack the city from the same place.

Russian troops have been using their "last reserves" in the Avdiivka area over the past three days, he added.

Avdiivka has been a front-line city since Russia first invaded Donbas in 2014 and is largely destroyed.

Dmytrashkivskyi agreed with the U.K. Defense Ministry's latest assessment of the battlefield situation near Avdiivka, published on March 20.

The ministry wrote that from a tactical perspective, the battle over Avdiivka would largely resemble the one for Bakhmut, which has been raging for the past seven months.

Russia has used all its forces in Bakhmut in an effort to completely surround the city, Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi, commander of the Ground Forces of Ukraine, said on March 17. Fighting is ongoing to the north, east, and south of Bakhmut, he added.

Yevgeny Prigozhin, the founder of the Russian state-backed mercenary Wagner Group dominating Moscow's efforts in the Bakhmut sector, said on March 3 that the city was "practically surrounded" by his forces.

The Ukrainian military's National Resistance Center called Prigozhin's address "a disinformation campaign designed to create panic among the population."

Bakhmut-bound infantry assault troops: 'We are holding on, ready for any scenario’

Independent journalism needs a community —
not a paywall.

We’re working hard to show the world the truth of Russia’s brutal war — and we’re keeping it free for everyone, because reliable information should be available to all.

Our goal: reach 20,000 members to prove independent journalism can survive without paywalls, billionaires, or compromise. Will you help us do it?

Can we reach 20,000 members?

News Feed

11:51 PM

Trump 'very surprised, disappointed' at Russian attacks on Ukraine amid peace talks.

"I've gotten to see things I was very surprised at. Rockets being shot into cities like Kyiv during a negotiation that was maybe very close to ending," Trump said during a news conference in the Oval Office. "All of a sudden rockets got shot into a couple of cities and people died. I saw thing I was surprised at and I don't like being surprised, so I'm very disappointed in that way."
5:10 PM

All territory will revert to Ukraine, predicts US diplomat.

The Kyiv Independent’s Chris York sits down with Michael Carpenter, former U.S. Ambassador to OSCE and senior director for Europe at the National Security Council, to discuss the current lagging U.S. military support for Ukraine amid the ongoing ceasefire talks with Russia. Carpenter also offers his predictions for the future of Ukraine’s occupied territories.
MORE NEWS

Editors' Picks

Enter your email to subscribe
Please, enter correct email address
Subscribe
* indicates required
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required

Subscribe

* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
Explaining Ukraine with Kate Tsurkan
* indicates required
Successfuly subscribed
Thank you for signing up for this newsletter. We’ve sent you a confirmation email.