Ukraine pulls troops from “disadvantageous positions” in Donetsk region – commander

Lieutenant General Serhiy Naiev reported this on Facebook, Ukrinform saw.

“It’s the second month since I took helm of the tactical group that holds the defenses lines in one of the areas within Donetsk region,” the commander noted.

“Almost every day I’m out there on the frontlines, in contact with our troops, those who form the backbone of our Army. These are strong and loyal soldiers who do their job every day, despite fatigue, weather, or other circumstances,” the general emphasized.

“Among them are those who have been fighting since 2014, and those who joined in 2022 or later. Each has their own path in the Army and their own experience. But they all have one thing in common – the desire to bring Victory closer,” Naiev noted.

“The most important thing for the command is to preserve the lives and health of our personnel. Therefore, a decision was made on one of the frontline sectors to withdraw forces and equipment from disadvantageous positions,” said Naiev.

According to the general, this allowed the command not only to preserve the lives of the troops, but also to improve defenses.

“The enemy is suffering casualties, and we have the opportunity to act more effectively,” Naiev noted.

He said over the past month, thanks to the joint work of reconnaissance teams, drone operators, artillery and mortar crews, tankers and infantry, more than 30 Russian armored vehicles of various types have been destroyed and more than 2,000 enemy troops have been killed in action.

“This has significantly reduced the number of enemy attacks in our direction,” Naiev noted.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, on March 17, the spokesman for the Khortytsia grouping of troops, Viktor Tregubov, said Russian troops were increasing pressure on the Ukrainian forces in the Toretsk operational axis.

Photo: General Staff, illustrative