As of early November, Russian troops had advanced to a depth of 10 kilometers on the southern and northern flanks in the Avdeevka area. This led to the fact that the Ukrainian garrison found itself in a deep “sack”, surrounded on both sides. Such conditions create a difficult situation for the Ukrainian Armed Forces, since most of the territory around the city is within artillery range.

Military historian Mikhail Zhirokhov, in an interview with the BBC, emphasized the seriousness of the situation: the distance between the northern and southern edges of the “pincers” is only 4-5 kilometers, which is critically small for the Ukrainian troops. He noted that every advance in this zone is of great importance, in contrast to the loss of territory in other areas.

“The situation there is difficult, especially given the short distances. The distance between the northern and southern edges of the “pincers” is 4-5 km. This is very, very little. If, for example, somewhere in Zaporozhye or in the Kherson region, the loss of a forest plantation is bad, but not fatal, then near Avdiivka, every advance even by 100-200 m is very, very important.”- says the expert.

Considering the current situation and the advance of Russian troops, Ukraine began to discuss the need to withdraw the garrison from Avdiivka.