Wagner claims victory at Bakhmut and says he is in full control, but kyiv insists the fight is not over
Wagner claims victory in Bakhmut: Russian mercenary group says it has full control of the besieged city in Ukraine in a possible strategic victory for Putin, but Kiev insists the fight is not over
- Estimates say that up to 30,000 Russians have been killed or wounded in Bakhmut.
The Russian mercenary force Wagner says it was victorious at Bakhmut after more than 200 days fighting for the city, but Ukraine has dismissed the claim.
Leader Yevgeny Prigozhin claimed his forces are in full control of the besieged city in video recorded in front of destroyed buildings as explosions are heard in the distance.
Ukraine’s deputy defense minister rejected the claim but conceded that the situation was “critical”.
Serhiy Cherevatyi, a spokesman for Ukraine’s eastern command, also told the Associated Press news agency that Prigozhin’s claim “is not true.” Our units are fighting in Bakhmut.
Wagner’s mercenaries have fought the longest and bloodiest war yet to take the eastern city and previously claimed to have taken it.
The city, now largely destroyed, is not a strategically important location for Russia, but Ukraine has poured vast amounts of resources into defending it.
Wagner’s leader Yevgeny Prigozhin claimed that his forces are in full control of Bakhmut, which kyiv denies, in video recorded in front of destroyed buildings as explosions are heard in the distance.
Wagner’s mercenaries have fought the longest and bloodiest war yet to take the eastern city and previously claimed to have taken it.
Serhiy Cherevatyi, a spokesman for Ukraine’s Eastern Command, said Prigozhin’s claim “is not true. Our units are fighting in Bakhmut’ (on the photo: rockets fired at Russian troops in Bakhmut yesterday)
Western estimates say that between 20,000 and 30,000 Russian soldiers have been killed or wounded in Bakhmut, while the Ukrainian army has also suffered heavily.
In its latest intelligence update, the UK Ministry of Defense (MoD) said Russia’s redeployment of “up to several battalions” to the area over the past four days followed Ukraine’s tactical gains on the flanks of the city. largely destroyed.
The Defense Ministry added: “Given that Russia is likely to maintain relatively few uncommitted combat units in Ukraine, the redeployment represents a notable commitment by the Russian command.”
“Russia’s leaders are likely to continue to view the capture of Bakhmut as the key immediate war objective that would allow them to claim some measure of success in the conflict.”
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky is in Japan for talks with the leaders of the world’s most powerful democracies at the G7 summit.
Zelenskiy said on the Telegram messaging app that they also discussed Ukraine’s needs for mine clearance and mobile hospitals during their first face-to-face meeting since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Reuters reported.
kyiv has been preparing for a major counter-offensive to retake territory seized by Russia since February last year.
The news in Bakhmut comes after US President Joe Biden approved plans to train Ukrainian pilots on US-made F-16 jets, in a move that could tip the scales in the war with Russia.
F-16 training will be conducted using European-owned but US-built F-16s and will likely begin in the coming weeks.
A Shocking Before And After Of Bakhmut Highlighting The Devastation Wrought By The Conflict
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