Earlier this month, the Ukrainian army was forced to withdraw from Avdiivka, a suburb of Donetsk, surrendering the city to the Russians. Moscow's forces have kept up the pressure since that time and this week the Ukrainians were forced out of the village of Lastochkyne. Kyiv is citing a lack of both personnel and ammunition for these setbacks. Russia reportedly launched seven missiles and fourteen drones during the onslaught and Ukraine was only able to neutralize a little more than half of them. French President Macron attempted to rally more support for Ukraine during a meeting in Paris, describing this week as a "critical juncture" in the ongoing war. But it remains unclear when Ukraine can expect to receive more military aid or if that will be enough to shut down the latest Russian offensive when it arrives. (Associated Press)

Ukrainian troops have pulled out of a village in the east of the country, an army spokesman said Monday, as Russian forces make their advantages in manpower and ammunition tell on the battlefield at the start of the war ’s third year.

The latest setback for Kyiv’s soldiers was in the village of Lastochkyne, where they fell back to nearby villages in an attempt to hold the line there, Dmytro Lykhovii, a spokesman for one of the Ukrainian troop groupings, said on national television.

Lastochkyne lies to the west of Avdiivka, a suburb of Donetsk city that the Kremlin‘s forces captured on Feb. 18 after a four-month battle. The outnumbered defenders were overwhelmed by Moscow’s military might, and Ukraine chose to pull out its troops and mount a defense elsewhere.

As the linked AP analysis points out, the loss of Lastochkyne isn't all that large of a setback. It's a relatively small village and the Ukrainians only had to fall back a couple of miles. Also, the move will allow them to consolidate their remaining forces and hopefully strengthen their lines to the west. But the loss was also symbolic in nature and speaks to the deteriorating situation we're seeing.

The original intent of the Ukrainian resistance was to fully drive Russia out of all Ukrainian territory and reestablish the country's 2014 borders. Few thought that would ever be possible, but it was hoped that they would at least be able to prevent Putin from taking any new territory. Now, however, the battle lines are moving to the west, not to the east. The progress by Russia remains slow, but they are showing that they still have to capability to take and hold Ukrainian turf.

Even additional infusions of money and ammunition may not be enough to turn the tide. What Ukraine is really lacking is a sufficient supply of new recruits to replace the fallen and captured. A new report from earlier this month painted a bleak picture of Ukraine's recruitment efforts. Zelensky is currently pondering lowering the draft age from 27 to 24. They are also signing up older and older soldiers. Many young people are balking at the prospect of enlisting. Others are showing up at shooting ranges to learn how to handle military weapons before they are called up. Most of these people are raw recruits with no military training or experience. They are facing a Russian army of battle-hardened veterans. 

We can admire the nationalism and fierce independence of the Ukrainian fighters, but the cold, hard reality seems to be settling in. Taking on the Russians was a daunting challenge from the beginning. Ukraine made a spirited effort to launch a counteroffensive, but it simply never developed to the point where they could show any significant progress. Russia retains a significant advantage in both manpower and munitions. At the risk of repeating myself, I believe that it's time for a negotiated peace settlement. Nobody wants to concede defeat to a madman like Putin, but Russia is slowly grinding Ukraine into dust. The country is a pile of rubble in many areas and Ukraine's infrastructure desperately needs to be rebuilt. That can't happen while they are being shelled every day. There must be some sort of peace deal that Putin could live with. One should be put on the table now while Ukraine still has any tables left to sit at.