A Ukrainian Town That Has Held Out This Long Has Fallen

An eastern Ukrainian town that has managed to stay out of Russian hands for more than two years has fallen. Ukraine's military said on Wednesday that it was pulling troops from the hilltop town of Vuhledar due to the "risk of the encirclement of the city" and to "protect the military personnel and equipment," reports the AP, which notes the town's population had dwindled from 14,000 people to fewer than 100. More on the significance, in terms of Vladimir Putin's goals and Ukraine's current position:

• The location: NBC News reports Putin has long stated he is looking to seize the entire Donbas region, which is home to the provinces of Donetsk and Luhansk, in southeastern Ukraine. Russia currently controls 60% of the Donetsk region and all but 1.5% of the Luhansk region. Russian troops have been fighting at key locations along nearly 100 miles of the front in Donetsk. After taking Ukrainsk two weeks ago, they began encircling Vuhledar.

• How Russia did it: The AP cites a rep for the 72nd Brigade, which had been defending Vuhledar non-stop since August 2022, as saying this: The Russians' "main tactic was to encircle us from the flanks, and they did this constantly for six to seven months with constant aerial attacks—due to this tactic they managed to exhaust our resources, because we don't have as much as they have."
• Reading into Ukraine's loss: From the AP: "The fall of a front-line town nestled atop a tactically significant hill is unlikely to change the course of Ukraine's war against Russia. But the loss underscores Kyiv's worsening position, in part the result of firm Western red lines," specifically, the US' refusal to allow Ukraine to use Army Tactical Missile Systems, or ATACMS, to strike targets deep inside Russia, including airfields.
• What Russia has gained: Perspective from NBC News: "Control of Vuhledar, which lies at the intersection of the eastern and southern battlefields, is significant because it will ease Russia's advance as it tries to pierce deeper behind the Ukrainian defensive lines." It notes Vuhledar is also located near a railway line that ties Crimea to the Donbas region.
• All eyes on Pokrovsk: The Ukrainian logistics hub sits 19 miles north of Vuhledar. Analysts believe Russia will now try to take Kurakhove in order to then seize Pokrovsk.

(More Russia-Ukraine war stories.)