The enemy is trying to encircle the Ukrainian troops in Severodonetsk, but at the moment there is no need for their withdrawal, Deputy Chief of the Main Operational Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksiy Hromov said.

"Yes, the enemy is trying to encircle our troops... All activities, all actions that are carried out by both military personnel and units as a whole, consist in the implementation of a single plan. At this time, according to the plans of the command, of the General Staff, there is no need for our military units to withdraw from the territories that you named," Hromov said at a briefing at the Ukraine media center in Kyiv on Thursday.

So he answered the question of whether the Ukrainian troops are ready to retreat from Severodonetsk in the event of a threat of their encirclement by the Russian military.

Hromov noted that fierce street fighting continues in Severodonetsk.

"The subdivisions will carry out tasks with all the available forces and means, with the available resources," he said.

The representative of the General Staff pointed to the danger of the capture of Severodonetsk by Russian troops.

"In the event of the capture of Severodonetsk, we will have to defend along the river bank and will also fight in urban areas," Hromov said.