MOSCOW, July 4. /TASS/. Ukrainian troops left the Kanal neighborhood in Chasov Yar located on the Kiev-controlled part of the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), spokesman for Ukraine's Khortitsa operational-strategic group Nazar Voloshin said on Thursday.
"It was inexpedient to hold on to the Kanal neighborhood. This threatened the lives and health of servicemen. The positions of our defenders were destroyed. The military command made a decision to retreat to more prepared and protected positions," the spokesman said during a live broadcast of the Ukrainian television marathon.
DPR defense circles told TASS on July 3 that Ukrainian troops had abandoned their positions in the east of Chasov Yar and were trying to reinforce defenses in the town’s western part. Russia’s Defense Ministry reported on July 3 that Russian troops had fully liberated the Novy neighborhood in Chasov Yar.
Chasov Yar is a key logistic hub for the Ukrainian army. The Ukrainian military admitted earlier that the situation in that frontline area was tense for the Kiev forces.