According to the Defense Ministry in Moscow, the city of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine has been completely occupied by Russian troops. This was announced by the Ministry in Moscow, as reported by the state news agency Tass.
The head of Wagner’s private army, Yevgeny Prigoschin, had previously announced the conquest of the city, which had been fought over for months and was now almost completely destroyed. There was initially no confirmation from the Ukrainian side.
Conquest would be important step for Russia
Bakhmut, which once had a population of more than 70,000, is the main part of the line of defense between the cities of Siversk and Bakhmut in the Donetsk region, established after the Russian conquest of Sieverodonetsk and Lysychansk. Should the city actually fall to the occupiers, the route to the major cities of Slovjansk and Kramatorsk would open up for the Russian troops. This would bring a full conquest of the Donetsk region planned by Russia closer.
Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin congratulated the Wagner troops. As several Russian agencies report, he now wants to honor all those who have worked particularly hard for the intake with an award.
conflicting parties as a source
Information on the course of the war, shelling and casualties provided by official bodies of the Russian and Ukrainian conflict parties cannot be directly checked by an independent body in the current situation.
Ukraine had previously rejected Prigozhin’s statements as untrue, but described the situation of its own troops in Bakhmut as critical. [email protected]) 21.05.2023 00:10:04 reuters.com
Previously Ukrainian advance at Bakhmut
Most recently, Ukrainian troops had even gained ground around Bakhmut. The U.S. Institute for the Study of War (ISW), which monitors events at the front, said on Friday that the Ukrainian army was advancing south and north of the city to avert the danger of the Ukrainians being surrounded in Bakhmut.
In addition, the counterattacks forced Russia to use its scarce forces against a localized Ukrainian attack – as the Ukrainian army leadership probably intended.
Probably tens of thousands dead
For more than 200 days there has been fighting over the former industrial town of Bakhmut, the place has been completely destroyed and consists practically only of ruins. The battle is considered the heaviest in the war against Ukraine. However, there are no official numbers on losses.
US officials said in early May that they assumed around 20,000 Russian soldiers had been killed since December alone. They gave no information on the Ukrainian side. These numbers cannot be independently verified.