Russian forces have fully seized the eastern Ukraine‘s town of Vuhledar, a stronghold that had withstood heavy assaults since the onset of the 2022 conflict, according to reports from Russian war bloggers and media on Wednesday.

Videos shared on Russian Telegram channels showed troops raising the Russian tricolor flag over the ruins of the town. Once home to more than 14,000 residents, Vuhledar has suffered extensive destruction, with many Soviet-era apartment buildings reduced to rubble.

The Moskovsky Komsomolets newspaper reported that Vuhledar has ultimately succumbed after the last remaining Ukrainian troops from the 72nd Mechanized Brigade, known for their fierce defense, retreated late Tuesday.

Both the SHOT Telegram channel and pro-Russian war bloggers have verified that Vuhledar is now entirely under Russian control, although there has been no official comment from either the Russian or Ukrainian military forces.

On Tuesday, a regional official from Ukraine reported that Russian forces had reached the center of Vuhledar, a coal mining town situated on strategically significant elevated terrain. Since August, Russian troops in eastern Ukraine have made their most rapid advances in two years, despite a Ukrainian operation aimed at the Kursk region intended to compel Moscow to reallocate its forces.

President Vladimir Putin has stated that Russia’s main tactical objective is to capture the entirety of the Donbas region in southeastern Ukraine. Currently, Russia occupies nearly 20% of Ukraine, including approximately 80% of the Donbas area.

Since the onset of the conflict in February 2022, the war has primarily involved extensive artillery and drone engagements along a heavily fortified 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front, with hundreds of thousands of soldiers involved.

In early August, following the Ukrainian incursion into Kursk, Russian forces have been advancing westward at strategic locations along approximately 150 km (95 miles) of the front in the Donetsk region, with the logistics hub of Pokrovsk being a primary objective.

On September 17, they seized control of Ukrainsk and subsequently encircled the hilltop town of Vuhledar, located about 80 km (50 miles) south of Pokrovsk, effectively compelling Ukrainian forces to choose between retreating or facing inevitable capture.

Russia has increasingly employed pincer tactics to encircle and tighten its grip on Ukrainian strongholds. Reports from the area indicate heavy bombardment of the town using artillery and aerial glide bombs.

Neither side has disclosed casualty figures, but both claim that the other has suffered significant losses in the battle for the town.

The control of Vuhledar is crucial as it lies at the junction of the eastern and southern fronts, facilitating Russia’s efforts to penetrate deeper into Ukrainian defensive positions. Russian military analysts suggest that the next objective could be Velyka Novosilka, situated just over 30 km (20 miles) to the west.

Additionally, Vuhledar is strategically located near a railway line that connects Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014, to Ukraine’s industrialized Donbas region, which includes Donetsk and Luhansk. Currently, Russian forces hold 98.5% of the Luhansk region and 60% of the Donetsk region.