The Ukrainian army confirmed this Monday that Wagner’s group of mercenaries, linked to Russian President Vladimir Putin, continues to break through the defenses of the strategic city of Bakhmut in the eastern region, without success and with significant losses.
This was said by the commander of the Ukrainian Ground Forces, Oleksandr Syrskyi, who added that the situation around Bakhmut in the Donetsk region is “provocative”.
“The (Russian) residents are still trying to break through the defenses and are advancing towards the center of the city, but they are suffering heavy losses,” Syrskyi was quoted as saying by local agencies.
Russia increases its pressure on Lugansk, keeping the siege of Bakhmut
He emphasized that, as has been the case for several weeks, “the situation around Bakhmut remains difficult. Wagner’s attack units are advancing from various directions (…) and are trying to reach the central areas of the city”.
Ukrainian resistance
According to Syrskyi, “in the course of so many battles, Ukrainian soldiers inflict significant civilian casualties”, which does not indicate a military issue and which cannot be confirmed from any other sources.
However, he pointed out that “the defenders repel all Russian attempts to attack the city with artillery, tanks and other weapons, and with this defense of the fortress (one of the names by which it is known) Bakhmut continues.”
Ukraine keeps the pulse by fortifying reserves in Bakhmut
Ukraine is fighting for every metro
The head of Wagner’s mercenary Russia, Yevgeny Prigozhin, also described the situation in Bakhmut on Monday as “very difficult”, and was sure that Ukraine would “fight for every meter”.
“In Bakhmut, the situation is very difficult, the opponent is fighting for every meter and the closer we get to the center of the city, the harder you fight,” Prigozhin was quoted as saying by the press service.
Over the weekend, fighters from a Russian paramilitary group reportedly captured the second position in the Bakhmut AZOM engineering zone, according to Andrei Marochko, a representative of the Russian-imposed authorities in Lugansk, but they still do not control the entire territory. .
Meanwhile, the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, stated this Sunday that in the battle of Bakhmut Ukrainian forces removed more than 1,100 Russian soldiers last week and seriously injured another 1,500 invading soldiers.
The situation in Bakhmut is “very difficult”
“It is very difficult in Bakhmut, the opponent is fighting for every meter and the closer we get to the center of the city, the harder you fight,” Prigozhin was quoted as saying by the press service.
According to him, the Ukrainian armed forces are increasingly sending “more and more support” to the town, which the Russians have been trying to capture since last summer.
At the same time, Prigozhin stated that Wagner’s troops were “advancing” in the city, which both sides considered important for the future of the Donbas battle.
“We’re going to make progress and we’re going to make progress,” Wagner boss said.
Over the weekend, fighters from the paramilitary group reportedly took over the second positions in the Bakhmut AZOM engineering zone, according to Andrei Marochko, a representative of the Russian-imposed authorities in Lugansk.
According to Márochko, these positions allow the Russian forces to “control the movements of the enemy, in addition to creating a good beachhead for the future development of our forces.”
