Ukraine Troops Abandon Village That Became Symbol of 2023 Counteroffensive

Kyiv's forces have withdrawn from a village they recaptured in their counteroffensive last summer and lost their foothold on the Russian-occupied east (left) bank of the Dnieper River in southern Ukraine, it has been reported.

German outlet Bild was among media sources which reported that Kyiv's forces had left the settlement of Urozhaine in the Donetsk region which had been a significant feature of last year's counteroffensive.

Ukraine entered the settlement on August 10, 2023, liberating it six days later in a gain of great strategic value that was seen as a symbol of the high-profile operation to recapture territory seized by Russia.

Citing sources in Kyiv's General Staff, Ukrainian media reported that "it no longer made sense to hold positions" there due "to large-scale destruction."

In its update on Tuesday, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a Washington D.C.-based think tank, noted how Russian forces had advanced into northern Urozhaine on June 13.

The Russian Defense Ministry released footage of the chief of Russia's General Staff, Valery Gerasimov getting reports from one of his commanders about the purported seizure by Moscow of the village.

It comes amid reports Kyiv's forces have also withdrawn from their foothold on the Russian-occupied east bank of the Dnieper River in southern Ukraine.

In October 2023, Ukraine's 37th and 38th separate marine brigades captured the village of Krynky in the Kherson region, giving Kyiv a strategically important bridgehead on the Dnieper.

The area has been the scene of intense fighting and heavy losses on both sides but on May 27, the Ukrainian General Staff said its troops were maintaining positions near Krynky and "other left-bank bridgeheads."

However, citing Ukrainian military sources, Ukrainska Pravda reported that Kyiv's forces had been forced to leave their positions in the area.

The DeepState Map Project, which has links to Ukraine's military and charts the control of territory in the war, confirmed the loss of Krynky. Ukrainian MP Maryana Bezuhla, also referred to its loss in a post on June 8.

The ISW said Tuesday that fighting had been ongoing near Krynky over the previous two days "but there were no confirmed changes to the frontline." Newsweek has contacted the Ukrainian Defense Ministry for comment.

Meanwhile, Bezuhla who had raised the alarm about Ukraine's loss of Krynky over a month ago, posted on Facebook that she has applied to leave President Volodymyr Zelensky's Servant of the People parliamentary faction on Wednesday.

She has caused controversy for repeatedly criticizing the former and current military leadership of Ukraine, including ex-Commander-in-Chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi and his successor, Oleksandr Syrskyi.

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