This area will be extremely hot in winter as well: military expert Zgurets on fighting around Avdiivka

He shared the information on Espreso TV.

"I repeat, Avdiivka has military and political components in any case. Visually, it seems that by flanking attacks from the north and south, having penetrated our defense and bypassed the main fortification lines, the enemy has the illusion of creating a situation that was initially around Bakhmut. Now the enemy is really worried about the penetration of Ukrainian forces deep into Donetsk. These flank attacks of the occupiers from Stepove to Sieverne make up a stretch of about 8 kilometers. That is, the situation looks illusory for the enemy, who think that if they continue to press, they will be able to secure this encirclement," commented the Defense Express CEO.

According to him, the two Russian assaults on Avdiivka demonstrated the resilience of Ukrainian defense, the effectiveness of fortifications, minefields, anti-tank weapons and artillery.

"But the dominance of political tasks, in particular, to reach the administrative borders of Donetsk and Luhansk regions to create a positive background for Putin's election, in my opinion, will shape the realities in which the Russians are now operating and will continue to operate for a certain period of time. I think that the winter period will also include the fighting around Avdiivka because we see that there are no changes in the enemy's plans. Also, the transfer of enemy reserves to these areas continues. In any case, this point will be hot, I hope, with all the consequences for the enemy in terms of significant losses of manpower and equipment," the military expert noted.

Serhiy Zgurets summarized that the Ukrainian side has the right approach - creating conditions for “grinding” Russian troops in this area.

Russian offensive on the key city of Avdiivka in eastern Donetsk region

On October 11, the Institute for the Study of War noted that the Russian occupying army had intensified its offensive around Avdiivka in the Donetsk region. The city has been a frontline one for almost 10 years, and now Russian troops are trying to encircle it.

The Ukrainian General Staff reported that in the Avdiivka direction, the Ukrainian Armed Forces repelled 10 attacks near Avdiivka and another 8 attacks east of Stepove and southeast of Sieverne in the Donetsk region.

The head of Avdiivka City Military Administration, Vitaliy Barabash, reported shelling of Avdiivka, Donetsk region, which killed an elderly man and wounded two civilians.

On October 12, experts of the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) named the real reasons for the Russian offensive on Avdiivka.

Vitaliy Barabash, head of the Avdiivka City Military Administration, noted that Russian troops are trying to concentrate their forces north of the city, launching assault operations.

On October 13, the ISW reported that in three days, Russian troops had captured 4.52 square kilometers of territory from different directions near Avdiivka. The occupying Russian army suffered significant losses in equipment and manpower. 

On October 17, ISW noted that in the coming days, Russian forces may intensify their attempts to encircle Avdiivka, and British intelligence believes that the Russian offensive on the city will be the largest since the beginning of the year, as they want to occupy Donetsk region within its administrative boundaries.