Kreminna (Ukrainian: Кремінна; Russian: Кременная) is a city in the Sievierodonetsk Raion of the Luhansk Oblast of Ukraine. Prior to 2020, it served as the administrative center of the former Kreminna Raion. It has a population of 18,417 (2021 est.).[1] The city was occupied by Russian Armed Forces on 18 April 2022 during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.[2]

Kreminna Кремінна (Ukrainian)
City
Kreminna railway station
Flag Coat of arms
Kreminna Show map of Luhansk Oblast Kreminna Show map of Ukraine
Coordinates: 49.05°N 38.2167°E / 49.05; 38.2167
Country	Ukraine
Oblast	Luhansk
Raion	Sievierodonetsk Raion
Founded	1680
City Status	1938
Area
• Total	15.72 km2 (6.07 sq mi)
Population  (2021)
• Total	18,417
• Density	1,200/km2 (3,000/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+2 (EET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+3 (EEST)
Area code	(+380)
Vehicle registration	BB / 13
Climate	Dfb

History

Kreminna was founded in 1680. Kreminna acquired the status of a city in 1938.

A local newspaper has been published in the city since December 1943.[3]

War in the Donbas

In July 2014, fighting took place in the city during the 2014 pro-Russian conflict in Ukraine.[4] Kreminna remained under Ukrainian control.[5] In March 2022, during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the pro-Russian mayor Volodymyr Struk who welcomed the Russian move, was found shot dead in the street after having been kidnapped from his home.[6][7]

Official advisor and a former deputy minister at the Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs Anton Herashchenko said that Struk was judged under the Lynch Law. Herashchenko suggested that the mayor was murdered by "unknown patriots" as the Russian forces were 15 kilometers away from Kreminna.[8]

Russian Invasion

On 11 March 2022, a residential care home for the elderly in Kreminna came under the fire of Russian tanks. According to Serhiy Haidai, the Ukrainian Governor of Luhansk Oblast, 56 elderly residents were killed and 15 others were taken by the Russian military to Svatove, a town under their control. Ukrainian emergency services and officials were unable to reach the incident scene due to ongoing fighting.[9]

The town was the site of some of the first fighting of the Battle of Donbas during the Battle of Kreminna. On April 18, 2022, Russian and LNR troops entered the city of Kreminna, capturing it a few hours later after clashes with the Ukrainian Army.[10][11] Haidai said "there were plans to evacuate the population," although due to heavy fighting it proved impossible. Haidai described the Russian forces as having "a huge amount of equipment".[12]

On 13 September 2022, Haidai stated that Russian forces had fled Kreminna three days ago, that the Ukrainian flag has been raised by local residents, but Ukrainian forces had not yet entered the town.[13] However, on 14 September, Haidai stated that Russian troops had returned to Kreminna and "torn down the Ukrainian flag".[14] On 19 September, a spokesperson of the so-called Donetsk People's Republic claimed that the Russian military and local militias 'repelled an assault of the Ukrainian Armed Forces', suggesting that the Ukrainian military reached the outskirts of the town.[15]

References

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На других языках

[de] Kreminna

[ru] Кременная