It is a city that has become the current major theater of operations in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Avdiïvka, in eastern Ukraine, has been surrounded by the Russian army for several days now, with fighting which seems to be getting bogged down. Vladimir Putin nevertheless affirmed this Sunday, October 15: “Our troops are improving their position in almost all of this space, a fairly vast space,” he declared in an interview on Russian television, an extract of which was was published on the social networks of the journalist who interviewed him, Pavel Zaroubine. “This concerns the areas of Koupiansk, Zaporizhia and Avdiivka,” added the master of the Kremlin, welcoming this strategy of “active defense” carried out by his army.
These statements by the Russian president on the situation around Avdiïvka come at a time when his army said it had made progress in the sector, determined to take this town located less than 15 kilometers north of Donetsk, the capital, under Russian control, of the eponymous region. Russia’s capture of Avdiïvka, built around a large coking plant, would above all be a symbolic victory rather than a strategic one, as this town represents Ukrainian resistance to Russian assaults since 2014.
For its part, the Ukrainian army, in its daily bulletin this Sunday, brushed aside all Russian assertions, ensuring that its men had “repulsed” Moscow’s attacks in the Avdiivka area. “The enemy keeps trying to break through our defense, but without success,” she said. However, this Saturday, the Ukrainian mayor of the city Vitaly Barabach judged the situation on the ground “very tense”, the Russians trying, according to him, to “encircle the city” with “more and more troops “. According to the mayor, a little more than 1,600 civilians remain in Avdiïvka and evacuations there are difficult due to constant bombing. Before the Russian offensive, the city had 30,000 inhabitants.
Ukraine: the Russians try to take Avdiïvka
© / afp.com/Sylvie HUSSON, Valentina BRESCHI
A third of Ukrainian territory dangerous due to mines and unexploded shells
“Nearly a third of our territory is threatened by mines and unexploded shells” affirmed Volodymyr Zelensky this Saturday, October 14, adding that it is in his eyes “obvious that global support is necessary to rid our territory Russian mines.” The subject of demining Ukrainian territory was notably discussed at a two-day conference in Zagreb this week. More than 40 countries and international organizations have pledged nearly 500 million euros to contribute to this task, which promises to be tedious.
Russian fleet strengthens in the Black Sea
According to one note from the British Ministry of Defense published this Saturday on (ex-Twitter), the Russian Black Sea Fleet “has very likely doubled its defensive and reactive position”, particularly “since it suffered a series of strikes in August and September”.
The British claim in particular that the Russian fleet “has relocated many of its best assets – including ships and submarines capable of launching cruise missiles – from Sevastopol to areas of operation and bases further afield. is, like Novorossiysk”.