A week after the key city of Severodonetsk in eastern Ukraine fell, Russia quickly took control of another defensive high ground. The Ukrainian military said on the 3rd that Ukrainian troops had withdrawn from the main eastern city of Lisichansk .
Hours before the statement, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said that Russian troops had seized control of the city after intense shelling. Ukrainian officials said that Russia had overwhelming advantages in artillery, air force and number of artillery shells in the battle in eastern Ukraine.
According to reports, since Lischichansk is the last city in the Luhansk region still controlled by Ukraine, the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from the area means that the area is completely under Russian control.
↑ Lisichansk was severely damaged in the battle
analysis pointed out that Lisichansk will provide a base for Russian troops to focus their advance to the southwest and enter Donetsk . If the three key cities in Donetsk Oblast are successfully controlled, Russia will achieve a "clear victory" - effectively control the entire Donbas region to complete the second phase of Russia's special military operations.
The last stronghold of Luhansk was lost, Ukrainian officials: Russia has many advantages
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said on the 3rd that the Russian army had occupied Lischichansk and some nearby settlements. A statement from the Russian Defense Ministry said that Russian troops and the Luhansk militia jointly took "complete control" of the city, which represented "the liberation of the Luhansk People's Republic."
The Ukrainian military also announced that day that Ukrainian soldiers had been "forced to withdraw" from this key defensive position. The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said that as Russian troops approached from three sides, they faced the risk of being surrounded and decided to retreat eastward. "Continuing to defend the city will lead to fatal consequences, and in order to protect the lives of Ukrainian defenders, the decision was made to evacuate," the Ukrainian Armed Forces said in a statement on social media.
↑On July 3, a building in Lisichansk was bombed
Since Russia took control of Severodonetsk on June 25, Lisichansk has become the last major city in the Lugansk region still under Ukrainian control. . At that time, some analysts said that due to its high terrain, Lisichansk was easy to defend and difficult to attack, and could provide the Ukrainian army with a more favorable defensive advantage. But in just over a week, Russia quickly took control of Lischichansk. Ukrainian officials say Russia has overwhelming advantages in the fighting in the east, from artillery and the size of its air force to the amount of gunpowder in its shells.
Sergei Gedai, the military administrator of the Luhansk region, said that after the Russian army took control of Severodonetsk, it increased its artillery attacks on Lisichansk. Gedai said, "In Severodonetsk, some houses and administrative buildings were fortunate enough to be preserved during a month of fierce street fighting, but in Lischichansk, the same administrative buildings were completely destroyed in a shorter period of time."
According to reports, Gedai urged Lisichansk residents to evacuate as soon as possible a week ago. Some residents said they had a premonition before Sunday that Russian troops would take control of the city. Denis, a Ukrainian artillery officer stationed in the southwest of the city, said, "(Before) there were a small number of troops in and around Lischichansk, but they no longer led organized resistance. People tried to evacuate, mainly on foot. ”
One resident who has evacuated said that what is happening is like “a knife stabbing into the heart.” After the Ukrainian army withdrew, Ukrainian President Zelensky stated that the withdrawal was "tactical" and that Ukraine would launch a counterattack with the help of long-range weapons provided by Western countries and regain control of the area.
The focus turns to the Donetsk region, and Russia will continue to advance to the southwest
The Donbass region in eastern Ukraine includes Luhansk and Donetsk, accounting for 9% of Ukraine's land area. With Russia taking control of Luhansk, the focus of the fighting between the two sides will shift to Donetsk. Report analysis said that the Russian army will use Lisichansk as its base to continue to advance southwestward and enter Donetsk. According to CCTV reports, the Luhansk armed forces stated on the 3rd that the battle for Seversk in the Donetsk region has begun.
↑Analysis said that the Russian army will continue to advance towards the goal of controlling Donbass
At present, Ukraine still controls a large area of territory in the Donetsk region, while Russia has already controlled Donetsk and Mariu in the region. Bol and other major cities. According to analysis, the Russian army will currently try to control three other major cities in the Donetsk region: Sloviansk, Kramatorsk and Bakhmut. The first two towns were briefly controlled by Russian-backed civilian militants in 2014 and were later recaptured by Ukrainian government forces.
analysis pointed out that if the Russian army can successfully control these three key cities in Donetsk Oblast, then Russia will actually control the entire Donbas region and further consolidate southeastern Ukraine to Crimea “Land Corridor” between.
According to reports, the Russian army has continued to make expected progress in the eastern region with overwhelming artillery power. It currently shows no signs of relaxing and continues to "wear down" Ukrainian troops through continuous shelling and small advancement strategies.
In early June, Zelensky said that Russia had controlled about 20% of Ukraine's territory. In his speech on the evening of July 2, he once again stated that more than 2,600 Ukrainian towns are currently under Russian control.
Red Star News reporter Ding Wen
editor Zhang Xun
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