Situation in eastern Ukraine isn't critical - Ukrainian military

He said this on Espreso TV.

"The fighting in the east is still going on. Our troops have been holding the line as they have been. There are no enemy breakthroughs or successes. The situation is tense, there are positions that change hands at the tactical level. There are situations where the Russian army is trying to break through. Unfortunately, we have losses, but this is not a situation that can be called critical. A serious struggle is going on," commented the Ukrainian Armed Forces serviceman.

According to him, after our soldiers left Avdiivka, Russia still failed to move the frontline, failed to break through it, because for the Russians, an attempt to take Avdiivka was a political issue. And the question of moving deeper into Ukrainian territories or breaking through Ukrainian defense did not work for the invading forces.

"By and large, the line along which our soldiers retreated is the line along which the frontline is held. Of course, the loss of Avdiivka, like any other settlement, means the loss of our territory. But it is always better to withdraw troops than to lose them. We will win back the territories. We understand that Ukrainian citizens live there, but we must realize that the soldiers defending these territories are also Ukrainians," summarized Ivan Tymochko.

• On February 22, 101 combat engagements took place at the front. The Defense Forces repelled enemy attacks in 8 directions and destroyed 1,000 soldiers.
• On February 23, National Guard spokesman Ruslan Muzychuk said that the Russian army was regrouping in the Avdiivka sector after suffering significant losses.