Russia is making its biggest gain since capturing Bakhmut in May as the war with Ukraine enters its third year.
Russia says it is in full control of the Ukrainian town of Avdiivka following Ukraine's withdrawal, adding that some Ukrainian troops are still holed up in a massive Soviet-era coking plant after one of the fiercest battles of the war.
The fall of Avdiivka is Russia's biggest gain since it captured the city of Bakhmut in May 2023 and comes almost two years to the day since President Vladimir Putin sparked an all-out war by ordering the invasion of Ukraine.
The Russian Defense Ministry said on Sunday that its troops had advanced 8.6 km (5.3 miles) in this part of the 1,000 km (621 mile) front line and that Russian troops had left the city after a deadly urban battle , would advance almost completely depopulated wreckage.
Putin hailed the fall of Avdiivka as an important victory and congratulated Russian troops.
“The head of state congratulated the Russian soldiers on this success, an important victory,” the Kremlin said in a statement on its website.
Ukraine said it was withdrawing its soldiers to prevent troops from being completely surrounded after months of fierce fighting. Moscow is trying to crush Ukrainian forces just as Kiev considers a new large-scale mobilization and President Volodymyr Zelensky appoints a new commander to lead the war.
But Russia said some Ukrainian forces were still holed up in the Soviet-era coking plant, once one of Europe's largest, in Avdiivka, which was crucial to Russia's goal of gaining full control of the industrial Donbas region.
“Measures are being taken to completely clear the city of militants and block Ukrainian units that have left the city and holed up in the Avdiivka coking and chemical plant,” Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said.
Russian state television showed how blue and yellow Ukrainian flags were lowered in Avdiivka and the white, blue and red tricolor of Russia was hoisted, including over the coking plant. There has so far been no public statement from the Ukrainian authorities on this matter.
Putin sent tens of thousands of soldiers to Ukraine in February 2022, triggering an all-out war after eight years of conflict in eastern Ukraine between Ukrainian forces on one side and pro-Russian Ukrainians and Russian proxies on the other.
Avdiivka, called Avdeyevka by Russians, has endured a decade of conflict. It has particular symbolic significance for Russia because it was briefly captured in 2014 by Moscow-backed separatists who captured part of eastern Ukraine, but were then recaptured by Ukrainian troops who built extensive fortifications.
Control of the city was key to Moscow's efforts to gain complete control of the Donbass industrial region. The loss of Avdiivka represents a major blow to Ukraine, which faces growing challenges in fending off Russian forces amid severe ammunition shortages and limited manpower.
The capture of Avdiivka is likely to boost Russia's morale ahead of Putin's re-election next month, which he will almost certainly win.
It is also seen as a further step toward securing Moscow's control over the regional center of Donetsk, about 20 kilometers to the east, which has been held by Russian and pro-Russian forces since 2014.