“In an attempt to take control over the city at any cost” the enemy deployed reserves for constant attacks from the flanks, which exhausted the defense capabilities of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and created a threat of encirclement.
Russian forces “suffered heavy losses in the prolonged fighting for the city,” the statement said.
According to an earlier report from the DeepState monitoring group on Oct. 1, enemy forces had raised Russian flags over the city center.
"Russians have occupied Vuhledar - they are flying their flags in every corner of the city," the group wrote, without providing further details.
This echoes a report by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) on the capture of the city, while casting doubt on the ability of the Russian army to make further advances beyond Vuhledar in the immediate future.
Geolocated footage published on Sept. 30 and Oct. 1 shows Russian forces planting Russian flags and operating freely in various parts of Vuhledar, following a report of a partial withdrawal of the Ukrainian force grouping to avoid encirclement.
The extent of Ukrainian casualties is unknown at this time, but the widespread reports of Ukrainian withdrawal suggest that the larger Ukrainian contingent likely avoided a Russian encirclement.