Russia seeks to surround Ukraine's Avdiivka stronghold from all sides

Nga tìm cách vây ép thành trì Avdiivka của Ukraine từ mọi hướng - 1 — Avdiivka is currently the hottest front in eastern Ukraine (Photo: AP).

"The situation in Avdiivka is getting more and more tense. The intensity of the fighting is constantly increasing. Russia has opened two more offensive directions, one towards the city of Donetsk, the other towards the industrial zone. The enemy is trying to storm the city from all directions," Vitaliy Barabash, head of the Avdiivka military administration, said on November 27.

Earlier, Mr. Barabash said that in recent days, the Ukrainian army had pushed back Russian forces near Stepove, a village northwest of Avdiivka.

Avdiivka is located in Donetsk Oblast, considered the gateway to the Donbass region of eastern Ukraine. Before the war, the city had a population of about 32,000, but now only about 1,500 people remain in the city.

Observers say Russia is applying similar tactics to Bakhmut to capture Avdiivka by mobilizing large numbers of soldiers and equipment for large-scale attacks.

Russia has intensified its ground and air attacks on Avdiivka since mid-October. Fighting is now focused on the industrial zone and a coal plant there.

Russia is believed to have launched its third and most intense attack on the city, with a large number of Russian infantry massing against Ukrainian defenses on both the northern and southern flanks.

Ukrainian and Western military analysts say Russia has suffered heavy losses in Avdiivka, although Moscow rarely mentions the fighting in the city.

Earlier this week, Russian military bloggers said Moscow had taken control of the industrial zone and was looking to attack the coal plant area.

On the Ukrainian side, Oleksandr Shtupun, a spokesman for the country’s military, said that bad weather was affecting the use of drones by both sides. He said that Ukrainian forces continued to fight and hold their lines, while Russia suffered heavy losses.

According to a report on November 27 by the British Ministry of Defense , in the past 6 weeks, Russia has suffered the greatest losses since the conflict broke out, mainly due to the offensive on the Avdiivka front. Previously, Russia suffered the greatest losses on the Bakhmut front, also in eastern Ukraine. However, the information has not been verified.

Meanwhile, Moscow has repeatedly asserted that Ukraine's counter-offensive campaign has failed and caused great damage.

Ukraine began its counter-offensive in June, but has yet to make any breakthrough. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on November 27 that despite NATO's strong support, Ukraine has not been able to significantly move the front line with Russia.

Mr Stoltenberg said Russian industry had been "militarised" and "received significant amounts of ammunition from North Korea" - allegations Moscow and Pyongyang have denied.

"This makes it harder for Ukraine to achieve the territorial gains that we all hope for. But rest assured, I am absolutely certain that the message that NATO allies want to send from this meeting will be that we need to stand with Ukraine," the NATO Secretary General stressed.

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