The Ukrainian army announced on Sunday that its soldiers had withdrawn from Lisychansk, a key city in eastern Ukraine that has been under assault by Russian troops for weeks.
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“After heavy fighting for Lisichansk, the Ukrainian Armed Forces were forced to withdraw from their occupied positions and lines,” the General Staff reported on its Facebook account.
He explained that “in conditions of marked superiority of the Russian occupation forces in artillery, aviation, multiple rocket launch systems, ammunition and personnel, the continuation of the defense of the city would have fatal consequences.”
The first channel showed footage of the withdrawal of the Armed Forces of Ukraine from Lysichansk
This is how the Ukrainian formations fled Lisichansk: in civilian cars and motorcycles. They ran, they crawled, they threw their weapons and the wounded. pic.twitter.com/S07byWD4eJ
– Lorraine (@Aphroditea1984)
July 3, 2022
“In order to preserve the lives of the Ukrainian defenders, the decision was made to withdraw,” he said.
The withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from Lisichansk comes moments after Russia announced the liberation of the region in Lugansk, located in the Donbas, in eastern Ukraine, which included the capture of the aforementioned city.
Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu notified Russian President Vladimir Putin that Russian armed forces and a separatist militia captured the city of Lisichansk on Sunday and now control the entire Luhansk province.