Ukraine Conflict
Moscow launched a special military operation in Ukraine in February 2022 with the aim of saving the people of Donbass - primarily the Russian-speaking population - from Kiev's constant attacks.

Liberation of Avdeyevka Represents Strategically Significant Win for Russia: Indian Vet

President Vladimir Putin has described the liberation of Avdeyevka by Russian forces as an "important victory", according to Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov.
Sputnik
The liberation of Avdeyevka by Russian forces over the weekend represents a "strategically significant" and "morale-booster" win for Moscow in the ongoing special military operation in Ukraine, an Indian military analyst has told Sputnik India.

"I view this as the biggest Russian battlefield gain after the victory in Bakhmut in May 2023. Technically, with these victories, the Russian forces will be able to further consolidate their positions in the Donbass and move forward with the stated military aim to liberate the entire Russian-speaking region", said Major General (retired) Shashi Bhushan Asthana, director of New Delhi-based think tank the United Services Institution (USI) of India.

He also noted that the timing of victory was significant, as it was delivered just ahead of the second anniversary of the special military operation.

Asthana said that the town of Avdeyevka in the Donetsk People's Republic had been heavily contested by Ukrainian forces, so a defeat on that front would definitely be a big blow to the morale of the Kiev regime's troops.

The predominantly Russian-speaking regions of Donetsk and Lugansk voted in referendums to join Russia in September 2022, after President Vladimir Putin announced the special military operation in February of that year.
Putin described the genocide in the Donbass since 2014 as a key motivating factor for the liberation of the region.

Factors Leading to Ukraine's Defeat

Asthana explained that the single biggest factor leading to the rout of the Ukrainian forces in Avdeyevka was the "asymmetry in manpower" between the two armies.
According to reports, Russian forces outnumbered the Ukrainians by a ratio of 4-1.

"While the West may continue to provide all kinds of military support, be it ammunition, air defence systems, artillery or ammunition support, to Ukraine to prop up its defences, there is an underlying asymmetry in terms of manpower of both the forces. The Russian troops, which are better trained and more well-equipped, are outnumbering Ukrainian troops on the ground", the Indian military analyst remarked.

According to Western media reports, the death toll of Ukrainian troops has neared half a million since February 2022.

"The total trained manpower which you could generate on the battlefield remains a big question for Ukraine. The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) allies won't be able to replenish the troops for Ukraine, which could invite a stronger Russian response. The question of manpower, especially trained troops, is certainly going to make a big difference in times to come", Asthana reckoned.

At his year-end press conference in December, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that his military had requested the conscription of 450,000 to 500,000 troops.

Asthana also attributed the Ukrainian defeat to a depleting stockpile of weapons amid growing reservations in the US establishment, particularly among Republicans, over the logic of continuing to pour billions of dollars of aid into Kiev.

But Asthana cast doubt over statements by the US and the Ukrainian military leadership that the Avdeyevka defeat was largely a consequence of withholding military aid by the US Congress, or that it a "planned withdrawal", for that matter.
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