“On February 17, during offensive operations, units of the Center group of forces completely liberated the city of Avdievka and advanced to a depth of 8.6 km,” the report says.
The department clarified that the total area of the liberated territory was 31.75 square meters. km.
Earlier, the head of the Russian Ministry of Defense, Sergei Shoigu, reported to Russian leader Vladimir Putin about the capture of Avdeevka. According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, the Ukrainian Armed Forces lost more than 1.5 thousand military personnel in the battles for Avdeevka per day.
The Russian Defense Ministry also emphasized that the liberation of Avdeevka by Russian troops made it possible to move the front line away from Donetsk.