Logistics have become complicated but there are still communication lines with Sievierodenetsk – Mayor

IRYNA BALACHUK – WEDNESDAY, JUNE 15 2022, 11:40 a.m.

The Russians are trying to take Sievierodonetsk by storm from several directions. Logistics have become complicated due to destroyed bridges but communication lines with the city remain.

Source: Oleksandr Striuk, mayor of Sievierodonetsk, in a 24-hour news broadcast

Quote: "The Russians are trying to take the city by storm from several different directions simultaneously. Since the bridges were blown up, the enemy thinks this puts psychological pressure on our soldiers. It’s clear that the situation is complicated right now, and the logistics have become more complex but the communications lines with Sievierodonetsk still remain. Therefore we keep defending the city and holding the defence line".

Details: There is a garrison staying with the civilians at the "Azot" [chemical] plant, and, since the bridges were blown up, there has been a threat of it being blockaded. Striuk stated that blowing up the bridges made the situation more complex but "there are still escape routes, though quite dangerous, but there are still communication lines so you can’t say that the city is isolated".

The mayor insists that the authorities are doing everything within their power to establish logistics and to make "more or less stable decisions".

Striuk reported that the Ukrainian armed forces control the industrial zone of Sievierodonetsk and the perimeter that enables communication with Lysychansk. There is currently fighting for the central area of the city, the Ukrainian forces are doing everything to push Russians out of the city centre.

Striuk stated that this is a "permanent situation with partial success, sometimes with tactical retreats." To sum it up, "the situation is complex but stable."

The mayor stated that when the situation in Sievierodonetsk began to worsen, there were nearly 10 thousand residents there. It is hard to say the exact number of residents that remain in the city today. The humanitarian situation in the city is critical.

Background:

•       On 15 June, British intelligence reported that the Russian armed forces thad taken control of most of Sievierodonetsk after a month of severe fighting. Ukrainians control the industrial zone.
•       On 13 June Serhii Haidai, the Head of Luhansk Oblast Military Administration, reported that the occupiers had destroyed all the bridges leading to Sievierodonetsk but insisted that Ukrainian soldiers are not blockaded there.

·        There are 540-560 civilians in the bomb shelters of the "Azot" plant in Sievierodonetsk, which is constantly under Russian fire.