Battle of Sievierodonetsk (2022)

The Battle of Sievierodonetsk was a military engagement in the wider battle of Donbas of the Eastern Ukraine offensive during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. The city of Sievierodonetsk acted as the administrative center of Luhansk Oblast before the invasion. By May 2022, Sievierodonetsk and the neighbouring city of Lysychansk were the only notable parts of the oblast that remained under Ukrainian control. By 14 June 2022, Russian forces gained control of most of the city and cut off all escape routes.

On 24 June 2022, Ukrainian units were ordered to retreat from the city and the next day Russian and pro-Russian separatist forces fully captured Sievierodonetsk. The Russian advance shifted towards to neighbouring Lysychansk, resulting in the battle of Lysychansk. The battle has been described as one of the war's bloodiest.

Background

The twin cities of Sievierodonetsk and Lysychansk were the site of a series of battles in 2014 between pro-Russian separatists and the Ukrainian military during the War in Donbas. Soon after the start of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, on 28 February, Russian forces began to shell Sievierodonetsk. According to Serhiy Haidai, the governor of Luhansk Oblast, one person was killed and several were injured. Gas pipelines were also hit by the shelling. On 2 March, fighting was reported in almost all the villages near Sievierodonetsk. Russian forces continued to shell the city, including a school gym that was acting as a bomb shelter. No deaths were reported. At 15:20 that day, Ukrainian officials said Russian forces tried to break through Ukrainian lines towards the city, but were repelled.

A month into its invasion, Russia claimed to control 93% of Luhansk Oblast, leaving Sievierodonetsk and Lysychansk as strategically important Ukrainian holdouts in the area. Russian plans to capture Sievierodonetsk hinged upon its successes in the nearby cities of Rubizhne to the north and Popasna to the south. By 6 April, Russian forces had reportedly captured 60% of Rubizhne, and shells and rockets were landing in Sievierodonetsk on "regular, sustained intervals". The next day, forces of the 128th Mountain Assault Brigade conducted an offensive which reportedly drove Russian forces 6–10 kilometers away from the other nearby town of Kreminna.

By 9 April, elements of the Russian 4th Guards Tank Division were reportedly concentrating near Sievierodonetsk. Between 11 and 12 April, continued Russian attacks in the area gained no ground. On 18 April, Russia renewed its offensive in eastern Ukraine, launching airstrikes on Sievierodonetsk. By the end of April, most of Sievierodonetsk's civilian population had fled.

In late April, Russian forces launched an all-out offensive along a front to fully capture remaining unoccupied territory of Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts.

Battle

Encirclement attempts

On 6 May, Russian and Luhansk People's Republic (LPR) forces made gains in the outskirts of Sievierodonetsk, attacking the village of Voevodivka just north of the city, while also capturing the village of Voronove to the southeast. Other villages were also attacked in an attempt to surround the city. Subsequently, it was reported by the city's mayor, Oleksandr Stryuk, that Sievierodonetsk was "virtually surrounded". Over the next days, Russian and separatist forces attacked Bilohorivka, Voevodivka, and Lysychansk, intending to cut off Sievierodonetsk from the south. They also captured Popasna.

On 9 May, LPR troops reportedly took control of Nyzhnie and started to attack Toshkivka, two settlements southeast of Sievierodonetsk. Heavy combat continued in Rubizhne, Voevodivka, and Bilohorivka, as Russian forces attempted to further encircle Sievierodonetsk from the western axis. The next day, Ukrainian forces destroyed a Russian pontoon bridge across the Donets river in the vicinity of Bilohorivka, attempting to disrupt the Russian advance, and reportedly destroying almost an entire Russian battalion in the process. According to Ukrainian regional police chief Oleh Hryhorov, Sievierodonetsk and its direct neighbor, Lysychansk, had become tactically encircled, as Russian artillery could freely hit the remaining open roads into the city. Power and water supply was disrupted in the cities, leaving tens of thousands of civilians without basic necessities. By 12 May, Russian and LPR forces had defeated Ukrainian forces in the Battle of Rubizhne and established full control of the city, furthering their attempts at encircling Sievierodonetsk.

For the most part, Russia subsequently ceased its ground attacks on the surroundings of Sievierodonetsk and Lysychansk and limited itself to artillery bombardments. Pro-Russian forces instead focused on completing the encirclement of the two cities. To this end, they attacked at the northern frontline around Izium and in the south toward Bakhmut. The northern attacks made little to no progress, but in the south, Russia made limited advances over several days of heavy combat. Fighting was mainly concentrated on a number of villages, including Toshkiva, Pylpchatyne, Hirske, and Zolote.

Attack on the city

On 27 May, Russia began its direct ground assault against Sievierodonetsk, despite not yet having completely encircled the city. Chechen Kadyrovites captured the Mir Hotel in the northern part of the city. Meanwhile, other Russian and separatist forces continued their attempts to form a pocket in the urban areas, attacking from the north near Rubizhne and southwest at Ustynivka and Borisvske. Further to the west, Russia continued to slowly advance in a number of areas such as Lyman and Siversk to disrupt the Ukrainian supply lines to Sievierodonetsk-Lysychansk. On the following day, 28 May, Russia made limited gains in Sievierodonetsk. The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) argued that the battle was already proving very costly for the Russian forces by this point, and could potentially exhaust their offensive capabilities. The ISW observed that both Russia and Ukraine were suffering heavy losses, but argued that personnel of the pro-Russian contingents were more difficult to replace.

By 29 May, Russian forces had launched a full assault on the city. Ukrainian defenders repelled attacks but were unable to prevent Russia's encirclement efforts. Russian troops were engaged in close-quarters fighting with Ukrainian soldiers, with clashes reportedly taking place in the "middle of the city".

By the morning of 31 May, Russian forces controlled between a third and a half of the city, with the Russians pushing and dividing the city into two halves. Later in the day, Ukraine confirmed between 70 and 80 percent of Sievierodonetsk was under Russian control, as well as most of the surrounding villages. Serhiy Haidai, the governor of the Luhansk region, reported on the street battles and said that "some Ukrainian troops have retreated to more advantageous, pre-prepared positions." By this time, about two-thirds of properties in the city were reportedly destroyed.

On 1 June, according to Ukraine, the Azot chemical plant was hit by Russian bombardment, and a nitric acid tank blew up, forcing people to stay indoors. On the following day, it was stated that around 800 civilians were hiding in bomb shelters beneath the Azot factory, which had also become a bastion of defence for some Ukrainian troops. Meanwhile, Governor Haidai said that Russian forces had reached the city's core. Ukrainian forces claimed they had captured six Russian soldiers and killed 200.

According to the United Kingdom's Ministry of Defence, as of 2 June, Russia had taken control of most of Sievierodonetsk. The following day, 3 June, a Ukrainian counterattack regained 20 percent of the territory it had lost within the city. Haidai stated that Ukrainian forces had repulsed a number of Russian attacks and destroyed equipment. He also claimed that Russia was "throwing all their reserves at Sievierodonetsk" and it was "impossible to deliver food and medicine to the city". Haidai added that Russia was blowing up bridges over the Donets to prevent Ukrainian reinforcements and the delivery of aid. At least 12 members of the Ukrainian Foreign Legion were fighting in the city, including a Georgian and Portuguese national. According to Reuters, two of its journalists were wounded and their driver was killed near Sievierodonetsk.

Governor Haidai stated that Russian general Aleksandr Dvornikov had "received the task by June 10 of either completely capturing Sievierodonetsk, or completely cutting off the Lysychansk-Bakhmut highway and taking it under control." The UK Ministry of Defence said that Russia was using tactics similar to those used in Syria by using forces other than its own soldiers as a way to reduce Russian casualties, including soldiers from the Luhansk People's Republic (LPR). These soldiers were not as well trained or equipped as regular Russian soldiers.

On 6 June, Haidai described the Ukrainian situation: "Our defenders managed to counterattack for a while – they liberated almost half of the city. However, now the situation has worsened for us again." In regards to the Lysychansk-Sievierodonetsk road, he said the Russians "do not control this road, but the entire route is being shelled. The Russians have amassed huge reserves. Time will tell whether they will have enough strength to take this route." He described Russian forces as being "simply incredible" in terms of numbers and equipment. Russian forces, he reported, were implementing "standard scorched earth tactics." Major General Kyrylo Budanov, head of Ukrainian military intelligence, stated that Ukrainian forces were slowly advancing despite "a tenfold advantage of the enemy in artillery". Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited Lysychansk and said "we're holding out" and "there are more of them and they are stronger", vowing that the Ukrainian army would not give up positions in the city despite apparent Russian tactical superiority on the front line.

The commander of the Ukrainian National Guard's Svoboda Battalion, Petro Kuzyk, described the street fighting as fierce and "horrifying". "There have been counterattack attempts – some successful, others not. There is constant pressure from their side. Some divisions had to pull back a block, while other divisions, including ours, were able to hold their positions. But all this is happening in extremely tough conditions," said Kuzyk, adding that they were "literally fighting for every house, every street. One day we might move one block forward, another day they push us back a block ... we can't rely solely on the infantry's stamina, we also need enough troops and resources such as tanks and artillery."

On 8 June the Ukrainian general staff said that it was "holding back" Russian attacks. However, according to the BBC
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