Ukraine's Commander-in-Chief on Marinka: There's nothing controversial about retreating

Valerii Zaluzhnyi, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, believes that there is nothing controversial about the fact that Ukrainian soldiers have stepped back to the outskirts of the town of Marinka, which the Russians have been devastating street by street and house by house for almost two years.

Source: Zaluzhnyi during a briefing on 26 December, when asked if the Russians had indeed captured Marinka

Quote from Zaluzhnyi: "The situation is exactly the same as it was in [the war-torn town of] Bakhmut – street by street, block by block, and our soldiers were being targeted – and the result is what it is. This is a war, so the fact that we have now retreated to the outskirts of Marinka and set up positions behind Marinka in some areas is nothing that can cause any public outcry. Sadly, this is what war is like." 

Details: The military official stressed that every inch of Ukrainian land is vital, but "the lives of our soldiers are even more important to us".

Zaluzhnyi stated that Ukrainian forces held Marinka for almost two years as the Russians annihilated it "street by street, then house by house".

The commander-in-chief added that Ukrainian troops are still in the northern part of the city as of today, 26 December 2023.

Background: Russian propaganda earlier said Russia’s Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu had informed President Vladimir Putin that Marinka had been captured.

Shoigu and Putin believe that the capture of Marinka will allow Russian forces to push the Armed Forces of Ukraine away from Russian-occupied Donetsk. Putin is insisting that the Russians will now gain an opportunity "to enter a wider operational space".

Oleksandr Shtupun, spokesman for the Joint Press Centre of the Tavriia Defence Forces, refuted the Russian propaganda claim that Russian forces have captured the city of Marinka.

"Fighting for Marinka continues. Our military personnel currently remain within Marinka’s administrative borders. But the city has been razed to the ground. But it’s wrong to say that Marinka has been completely captured," Shtupun stated.

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