MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia said on Saturday that its forces had inflicted a series of defeats on Ukrainian forces along the 1,000-km (620-mile) front line just as Ukrainian troops withdrew from the devastated eastern town of Avdiivka. Russian forces made inroads against Ukrainian troops along the front lines in a number of different directions, according to the Russian defence ministry. "Avdiivka, as a major node of resistance for the armed forces of Ukraine, has fallen," pro-Russian military blogger Yuri Podolyak said on Telegram. Avdiivka is seen as a gateway to Donetsk city, whose residential areas Russian officials say have been shelled by Ukrainian forces, sometimes from Avdiivka. Russian forces control a little under one fifth of Ukraine's internationally recognised territory.
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