Extract from ABC News
Russian forces have taken complete control of the Ukrainian city of Avdiivka, according to Russia's Defence Ministry.
Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated military units and their commander on Saturday on the capture of the Ukrainian city of Avdiivka, Russian news agencies reported.
"For outstanding military activity, I express my gratitude to all troops under your direction who took part in battles for Avdiivka," the agencies quoted Mr Putin as saying in a telegram to the commander of the "centre" group of troops in Ukraine.
The telegram listed units taking part in the operation.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu told the Kremlin Russian forces were now working to clear the final pockets of resistance at the Avdiivka Coke and Chemical Plant, officials said in a statement.
Videos on social media on Saturday appeared to show soldiers raising the Russian flag over one of the plant's buildings.
The announcement came the same day that Ukraine's military chief said he was withdrawing troops from the city in eastern Ukraine, where outnumbered defenders battled a Russian assault for four months.
The timing is critical as Russia is looking for a morale boost ahead of the second anniversary on February 24 of Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and the March presidential election in Russia.
In a short statement posted on Facebook, Ukrainian commander Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi said he had made the decision to avoid encirclement and "preserve the lives and health of servicemen."
The commander-in-chief added that troops were moving to "more favourable lines."
The withdrawal was conducted according to plan, but some Ukrainian soldiers were captured by Russia in the final stages, Brigadier-General Oleksandr Tarnavskyi, the commander who has been overseeing the fighting in Avdiivka for months, said without specifying how many.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised his troops for "exhausting" Russian forces in Avdiivka but agreed with the decision to withdraw to save lives.
In a speech at the Munich Security Conference, Mr Zelenskyy implored his Western allies to step up supplies of military aid and suggested the withdrawal was partly caused by a lack of weapons.
"Now, (the military) will replenish, they will wait for the relevant weapons, of which there simply weren't enough, simply aren't enough," he said.
"Russia has long-range weapons, while we simply don't have enough."
In recent days, reports emerged that Ukrainian troops in Avdiika faced a deteriorating situation.
Russian media reported the Kremlin's forces were making extensive use of plane-launched glide bombs, which fly at a shallower angle, to batter Ukrainian positions.
Fewer than 1,000 people remain in the city, according to the Donetsk regional governor, Vadym Filashkin. The city, with a pre-war population of about 31,000, is today a bombed-out shell of what it once was.
AP/Reuters
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