A residential building damaged during recent shelling on the outskirts of Volchansk, Kharkiv region, Ukraine, 11 May 2024, amid the Russian invasion. Photo: EPA-EFE/GEORGE IVANCHENKO

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) announced on Tuesday that its troops were retreating from the area around two towns in the country’s eastern Kharkiv region where Russian forces launched a renewed offensive last week.

“Our units have moved to more advantageous positions in some areas around Lukyantsi and Vovchansk in order to save the lives of our soldiers and avoid losses from enemy fire and attacks. Fighting is ongoing,” the General Staff statement said, adding that the UAF would not allow Russian forces to gain a foothold in the areas from which its troops had withdrawn and was continuing to shell enemy positions.

A planned visit by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to Spain and Portugal later this week was cancelled due to the worsening situation on the front line, CNN Portugal reported on Tuesday. Spanish news agency EFE confirmed that Zelensky had been due to visit Spain on 17 May, where he was scheduled to meet King Felipe VI and Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez.

The Russian Defence Ministry has not yet commented on the Ukrainian troop withdrawal. On 14 May, it announced its forces had taken control of the village of Buhruvatka, near Vovchansk. The ministry also said that Russian soldiers had advanced deep into enemy-held territory on Tuesday.

News of the continuing Russian offensive in the Kharkiv region comes at a key time for the Russian Defence Ministry, following Vladimir Putin’s surprise decision on Sunday to replace veteran Defence Minister Sergey Shoigu with First Deputy Prime Minister Andrey Belousov as part of a wide-ranging reshuffle announced after his inauguration for his fifth presidential term on 7 May.