Russian troops have taken complete control of the eastern city of Vuhledar, which Ukrainian forces have been defending since the beginning of Moscow’s full-scale invasion two and a half years ago.

Ukraine’s eastern military command confirmed on Wednesday that they had told the troops still fighting in parts of the Vuhledar to pull back to avoid becoming surrounded.

For more than two years Russia has been trying to take this city in order to advance further north and reach regional transportation hubs such as Kurakhove and Pokrovsk.

Pro-Kremlin military bloggers had posted several videos the day before showing Russian soldiers with flags on rooftops of different buildings in Vuhledar.