Avdiivka’s fall leaves Ukraine with an even tougher fight ahead

After the capture of Avdiivka, Ukrainian forces will need a new defensive line in unforgiving terrain, while Russia tries to press its advantage.on Feb 18, the front line has shifted substantially, setting the stage for the war’s next gruelling chapter as Ukrainian forces retrench and Russian troops reform for future assaults.

“They don’t have a well-established secondary line to pull back to,” said Mr Michael Kofman, a Russia expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, in a telephone interview. “Much depends on whether Russian forces can keep pushing or if they run out of momentum.” But closer to the fighting, especially near Avdiivka, it’s unclear if Ukrainian brigades have the resources to withstand another offensive like the one that enveloped the city or if Russian troops will be able to keep attacking after months of sustained combat.

But nearly two years later, military aid to Ukraine from Western allies, especially the United States, has slowed to a trickle because ofUkraine has tried to bridge that gap with self-exploding drones but is far from reaching any kind of parity with Russian forces, Ukrainian troops have said.US officials said that it was not too late to shore up Ukrainian forces if more aid could be funnelled through quickly.

The Kremlin’s military formations suffered thousands of casualties, and a significant loss of tanks and other armoured vehicles, as Ukrainian troops held on.That change of tactics, coupled with an increasing number of drones, a much higher volume of artillery and a flood of airstrikes, pushed Ukraine’s beleaguered forces to the breaking point.

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