The strategically important hilltop town of Vuhledar in eastern Ukraine has been completely overrun by the Russian army. In order to “protect the military personnel and equipment,” the Ukrainian military said on Wednesday that it was removing troops from the frontline town, which is located in a strategic area of the Donetsk region.
A message sent on Telegram by the military’s Khortytsia ground forces formation stated that the enemy’s operations created a threat of encircling the city. It said that Ukrainian troops had been “exhausted” by “flanking attacks.”
The pullout occurs one day after the Donetsk governor announced that Russian troops had entered the center of Vuhledar, one of the four Ukrainian territories that Russia annexed in 2022 despite not having complete control over its land.
Located on strategic high ground, the town has resisted capture since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022.
The town is situated at the meeting point of the eastern and southern fronts, serving as a supply hub for both sides of the conflict. Moscow has long considered its takeover as a significant step toward annexing the entire Donetsk area.
The strategic significance of Vuhledar is further enhanced by its close proximity to a train line that links the industrial Donbas region, which includes the Donetsk and Luhansk provinces, primarily under Moscow’s control, with Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014.