The Russian army’s offensive continues in eastern Ukraine, but comes up against fierce resistance from Ukrainian forces.
Article written by
Posted
Update
Reading time : 1 min.
The regular rains of the past few days have hampered the military operations of the Russian army. Lieutenant Andrei has just returned from the front line; he rejoices in this rainy weather: “It’s good for us. The Russians find it difficult to maneuver their armor in these conditions. And when the Russian soldiers attack, their vehicles get bogged down. The weather really plays in our favour. It’s a big advantage, because when they are at a standstill, we take the opportunity to shower them with shells and missiles”.
>> War in Ukraine: the latest information in our live
The Russian offensive, announced for days by Moscow, has finally been launched. But at this stage, the Ukrainian defenses are holding up, especially those protecting the town of Avdivka, one of the Russians’ priority targets in the Mariupol and Donetsk region.. “They are trying to surround us, but here the war has been going on for eight years”recalls Lieutenant Andrei.
“We had time to build fortifications around our positions, to dig trenches. It’s much more difficult for them to break through our defense lines.”
Lieutenant Andreiat franceinfo
To repel Russian forces, the 32-year-old officer calls on Western countries to speed up arms deliveries to the Ukrainian army: “The international community must understand that with every passing day, people are dying!” This war, Andreï is convinced that Ukraine will win it, but he fears that it will still be long and deadly.
The report in Avdivka by Omar Ouahmane and Gilles Gallinaro
listen