Ukrainian forces are to retreat from Sievierodonetsk in the face of a brutal Russian offensive that is reducing the battleground eastern city to rubble, a senior Ukrainian official said yesterday.
The news came shortly after the EU made a strong show of support for Ukraine, granting the former Soviet republic candidate status, although there is still a long path ahead to membership.
Capturing Sievierodonetsk has become a key goal of the Russians, as they focus their offensive on eastern Ukraine after being repelled from Kyiv and other areas following their Feb. 24 invasion.
Photo: AFP
The strategically important industrial hub has been the scene of weeks of street battles, as the outgunned Ukrainians put up a fierce defense, but Luhansk Oblast Governor Serhiy Haidai said the Ukrainian military would have to retreat.
“They have received an order” to withdraw, he said on Telegram. “Remaining in positions that have been relentlessly shelled for months just doesn’t make sense.”
The city has been “nearly turned to rubble” by continual bombardment, he added. “All critical infrastructure has been destroyed. Ninety percent of the city is damaged, 80 percent [of] houses will have to be demolished,” he said.
Capturing Sievierodonetsk and its twin city of Lysychansk would give the Russians control of Luhansk, and allow them to push further into the wider Donbas.
The situation for those that remain in the Lysychansk is bleak.
Liliya Nesterenko said her house had no gas, water or electricity and she and her mother were cooking on a campfire.
She was cycling along the street, and had come out to feed a friend’s pets, but the 39-year-old was upbeat about the city’s defenses: “I believe in our Ukrainian army, they should [be able to] cope.”
“They’ve prepared already,” she added.
In the southern Kherson region, a Moscow-appointed official was killed in an explosion, Russian news agencies reported, the latest in a string of attacks on pro-Kremlin officials in Ukrainian regions under Russian control.
The Interfax news agency reported an explosive device was planted in the car of the victim, who was likely the head of the region’s department of youth policy, family and sports.
With Ukraine pleading for accelerated weapon deliveries, the US announced it was sending another US$450 million in fresh armaments, including Himars rocket systems, which can launch multiple missiles at extended range.
At a Brussels summit on Thursday, EU leaders granted candidate status to Ukraine, as well as Moldova.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy hailed the news as “a unique and historic moment,” adding: “Ukraine’s future is within the EU.”
French President Emmanuel Macron said the decision by EU leaders sent a “very strong signal” to Russia that Europeans support the pro-Western aspirations of Ukraine.
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