Russian Defense Ministry releases video of newly liberated town of Sudzha

Video footage shows a devastated residential area, with key infrastructure areas such as schools, shops and residential buildings completely destroyed.

According to information from the Russian Defense Ministry, the country's army expelled the last Ukrainian soldiers from Sudzha on March 13, following intensified military operations in the area.

RT noted that the active phase of the counteroffensive in Sudzha began on March 7, when Russia targeted Ukraine's supply lines and main border crossings, launching attacks from multiple directions.

In a bold move, Moscow even launched a raid towards the southern border, cutting off a secondary supply line to Sudzha. Although Russian troops later withdrew from some of their forward positions, the raid caused serious disruption to Ukraine's logistics chain.

Unlike the protracted battles in Donbass, which focused on a strategy of attrition and slow advances, the Sudzha campaign focused on speed, the element of surprise, and the systematic destruction of Ukraine's supply networks.

The climax of the campaign was the “Pipeline Operation” on March 8, when a Russian regiment of 800 soldiers destroyed the Ukrainian armed forces’ supply chain. By the end of the day, the Russian military had taken control of key industrial areas north and east of Sudzha. Russia used abandoned gas pipelines to launch a surprise attack on Ukrainian forces.

According to CNN, the recapture of Sudzha is a major symbolic victory for Russia. Although Sudzha is a small town, with a population of about 5,000 before the Ukrainian attack, it is one of the few inhabited towns still controlled by Ukraine.

On March 12, Ukrainian military commander Oleksandr Syrsky said his country’s forces could retreat to more favorable positions if necessary to save soldiers’ lives, stressing that the Russian military was suffering heavy losses while trying to gain “political advantage.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky also stated: "It is clear that Russia is trying to put maximum pressure on our military. The military command is doing what needs to be done, saving as many lives as possible."