Ukrainian troops withdraw from key city of Avdiivka after manpower and ammunition shortages handed Putin's invading forces a symbolic victory after weeks of heavy fighting

Ukrainian forces have withdrawn from the key eastern city of Avdiivka in Ukraine's Donetsk region, handing Putin's invading forces a symbolic victory after weeks of heavy fighting.

In a brief statement posted on Facebook early Saturday, Ukrainian military chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said he made the decision to avoid encirclement and “preserve the lives and health of service members.”

The commander-in-chief added that troops were moving to “more favorable lines.”

He said: “Our soldiers performed their military duty with dignity, did everything possible to destroy the best Russian military units and inflicted significant losses on the enemy in terms of manpower and equipment.”

“We are taking measures to stabilize the situation and maintain our positions,” the statement said.

The withdrawal follows months of intense Russian attacks and marks the biggest change to the frontline since Moscow forces captured Bakhmut in May last year.

Troops rallied Friday to save a key eastern city from Russian attack, amid shortages of ammunition and manpower.

Ahead of the second anniversary of the Russian invasion, Kiev said on Friday it was sending reinforcements to Avdiivka – a key target for Moscow on the front line.

The eastern city, which had a population of about 34,000 before the Russian invasion, has become a symbol of Ukrainian resistance to the Russian attack.

Russian forces launched a costly bid to capture Avdiivka last fall, resulting in massive damage to the city and heavy casualties, reminiscent of the battle for Bakhmut.

The Ukrainian military said it was reinforcing units, with troops “maneuvering on threatened axes,” adding: “Ukrainian defenders continue to hold back the enemy who continues to try to encircle Avdiivka. The Ukrainian soldiers are holding out.”

Russia has been trying to capture Avdiivka for months and has managed to encircle the industrial center on three sides – at the cost of thousands of lives.

One official said the situation was even more challenging than Bakhmut's.

“It was difficult there (in Bakhmut), but now it is extremely difficult,” 3rd Assault Brigade spokesman Oleksandr Borodin said, adding that the battle in Avdiivka was relatively “more difficult” because Russian forces are now better equipped .

A Ukrainian army unit said on Thursday it had deployed even more troops to defend Avdiivka, describing the situation there as “extremely critical.”

“Fierce fighting is taking place in the city,” Oleksandr Tarnavskiy, a Ukrainian general in the east, said on social media on Friday.

Online maps of troop movements, prepared by military bloggers close to both the Ukrainian and Russian armies, showed Russian troops approaching Avdiivka and taking over the positions of Ukrainian forces the day before.

“New positions have been prepared and powerful fortifications are still being prepared, taking into account all possible scenarios,” Tarnavskiy said.

He called the situation in Avdiivka “difficult but controlled” and said commanders have been ordered to “stabilize the situation.”

Meanwhile, President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a security pact with France on Friday after striking a similar deal with Germany, which Chancellor Olaf Scholz hailed as a “historic step” to cement support for Kiev in its raging battle against Russia.

The deal with France, signed by Zelensky and French President Emmanuel Macron at the Elysee Palace, includes a French commitment for up to 3 billion euros ($3.2 billion) in aid by 2024, after 1.7 billion in 2022 and 2, 1 billion last year, officials said. .

They said the pact would last 10 years and would particularly strengthen artillery cooperation.

They said the deal was aimed at helping Ukraine “restore its territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders” and prevent “any renewed Russian aggression.”

The deal should also help pave the way for Ukraine's future integration into the European Union and NATO, the officials said.

“France confirms that future Ukrainian membership would constitute a useful contribution to peace and stability in Europe,” they said, quoting from the agreement.

On Thursday evening, Zelensky vowed that his government would do “everything” to save lives in Avdiivka.

The battle for the industrial center, less than six miles north of the Russian-controlled city of Donetsk, was one of the bloodiest of the two-year war.

Ukraine's top commander admitted Wednesday that Ukraine was outnumbered on the battlefield.

'The objective situation in Avdiivka remains threatening and unstable. The enemy continues the active rotation of troops and throws new troops and resources into the city,” Ukraine's Third Separate Assault Brigade said.

The Ukrainian Army General Staff said separately that troops “continue to hold back the enemy, who continues to try to encircle Avdiivka,” adding that Russia launched 34 attacks in the area on Wednesday.

According to the Center for Information Resilience, almost every building has been damaged or destroyed.

Despite the daily shelling, there are still nearly a thousand residents in the city, which once housed more than 30,000 people, Mayor Vitaly Barabash said in early February.

A Ukrainian army spokesman said bringing supplies into the city and evacuating those wanting to leave had become “complicated.”

Avdiivka's fate also raised concerns in Washington, Ukraine's main backer.

“Avdiivka is at risk of falling under Russian control,” US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Thursday.

Democratic President Joe Biden and the Republican-led House are at an impasse over a White House request for $60 billion in military aid to help defend Ukraine as the Russian invasion enters its third year.

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg had warned on Thursday that the delay was already limiting Ukraine's battlefield capabilities.

In addition to the delay in U.S. aid, the European Union has admitted that it will only be able to send half of the million artillery shells it originally promised would be sent in March.

The EU recently agreed on a €50 billion aid package for Ukraine, and a US$60 billion aid package is currently being held up in the United States.

But even if the aid packages do make their way to Kiev, questions remain about supplies of ammunition and equipment – ​​and where more might come from.

Analysts fear that without more support from the West, Russia's overwhelming numbers – and Putin's willingness to send so many of his soldiers to their deaths – could soon turn the tide of the war in Putin's favor.