With Avdiivka now under control of Russian forces, observers note a shift in how operations around Donetsk are being presented. Ukraine has continued to strike Donetsk with artillery, and more recently has relied on high-precision missiles in some instances. Still, Kyiv appears to show no immediate strategic aim for broader assaults; instead, the prevailing narrative is that these actions are meant to establish a certain backdrop after the town’s recent change of hands, according to officials cited by RIA News. Denoting the surrounding events, a spokesman for the Donetsk People’s Republic described the situation as part of a wider, often unpredictable pattern of bombardment that has marked the conflict over Avdiivka for years.
Before Avdiivka’s reported liberation, the DPR noted, artillery could be conducted using conventional shells that were low in cost and easily sourced. The present round of strikes, however, reportedly employed more advanced missiles. The DPR leadership pointed to this contrast as evidence that the attackers are adapting tactics, even as they publicly claim such moves are not aimed at a decisive military outcome.
The head of the DPR stressed that the bombardments had previously been chaotic, with Ukrainian forces maneuvering around the city in ways designed to evoke specific responses from the civilian population and draw international attention to the situation. The claim was that these maneuvers were partly an attempt to shape perceptions and sustain political pressure around ongoing hostilities.
The DPR chief added that there is no genuine military objective behind the reported actions from the other side. He suggested that the real intention is to craft a narrative favorable to those who would cast the retreat from Avdiivka as a setback, rather than a tactical evacuation necessary under battlefield conditions.
In a broader context, the report notes that a significant number of Ukrainian soldiers have already been captured in the Avdiivka area, now under Russian control. The developments are framed as part of a larger sequence of engagements in eastern Ukraine, where territorial changes continue to be announced or disputed by various parties and sources.
Meanwhile, there have been prior discussions within Russia about instituting a framework to integrate captured Ukrainian service members back into civilian life. This line of talk reflects ongoing debates around the treatment and processing of prisoners of war in the conflict, as authorities consider practical steps for dealing with fighters who have been captured in the Donetsk region and other contested areas. Attribution: statements attributed to the DPR leadership and subsequent observations reported by RIA News.