The Ukraine update: what happened tonight
Ironically, Russian troops are deadly enemies at the front
Russia is losing ground in Bakhmut (see story below). This is mainly because the shaky truce between fighters from the Wagner mercenaries and the regular Russian army has been broken. Russian volunteer Anastasiya Kashevarova reports on the feud at the front in a telegram post. “Everyone fights only for themselves and does not see what is happening around them. Everyone thinks they are heroes and everyone else is idlers,” writes the Russian.
It is particularly shocking that Putin’s army and Prigozhin’s mercenaries do not communicate with each other. This would result in the Wagner mercenaries getting into heavy fighting and the regular army not helping them, even though they were nearby and had ammunition. The result: Wagner had to retreat with heavy losses and lost several kilometers of territory.
As a result, the finger-pointing began. Wagner claims they radioed the 72nd Brigade, but the soldiers did not respond. The 72nd Brigade claims no one reported. Kashevarowa writes that there is apparently a directive from the Ministry of Defense not to work with Wagner. The Russian troops hate themselves. And according to the author, they therefore commit gross tactical errors.
Kashevarova writes that on both sides – army and mercenaries – fighters would give everything. But they are not a unit. “The enemy is taking advantage of that.” She wonders whether the combat units have now woken up and pulled themselves together or whether they first have to clarify among themselves who is the greatest of them. Either way, their bottom line is, “If you don’t get over your pride, we won’t win.”
Kiev: Russian troops pushed back two kilometers
After weeks of heavy fighting and repeated losses of position in the embattled town of Bakhmut, Ukrainian units have again made major gains in terrain. According to its own statements, the Ukrainian army pushed back the Russian troops in some places near Bakhmut. “We are conducting effective counterattacks there,” Ukrainian army commander Olexander Syrskyj said on Telegram on Wednesday evening. On some front sections of the city in eastern Ukraine, which has been heavily fought over for months, Russian troops have retreated by up to two kilometers.
According to Syrskyj’s account, the Wagner combat units deployed at Bachmut were replaced in some sections by regular Russian army units. These less well-trained units have now been defeated, said Syrskyj. However, the battle for Bakhmut continues.
The information provided by the Ukrainian military about their successes could not initially be independently verified.
Mercenary chief Prigozhin fears encirclement at Bakhmut
The head of the Wagner mercenary unit fears that his unit will be encircled in the battle for Bachmut. “Given the lack of ammunition, the ‘meat grinder’ now threatens to turn in the opposite direction,” Prigozhin wrote on Telegram on Wednesday evening. Due to high losses, Wagner had to leave flank protection to regular units of the Russian army, which, according to reports from the Ukrainian military, were clearly pushed back. “There is now a serious danger of Wagner being encircled by the collapse of the flanks,” wrote Prigozhin. “And the flanks are already cracked and crumbling.”
Ukraine has been resisting a Russian invasion for over 14 months. The city of Bakhmut in the Donetsk region, which is held by Ukrainian troops, has been a focus of hostilities for months. A major counter-offensive by the Ukrainian army has been expected for weeks.
General Staff: Russians loot industrial zones near Zaporizhia
Parallel to the evacuation of the civilian population in the Zaporizhia region in southern Ukraine, which they control, the Russian occupiers have also started looting and dismantling in the industrial zones there, according to information from Kiev. In Enerhodar, all the city’s medical facilities were completely looted, the Ukrainian general staff said in its situation report. All of the medical equipment was taken to Simferopol on the Crimean Peninsula, which was also occupied and annexed by Russia in 2014. Again, this information could not be independently verified.
Some time ago, in anticipation of a Ukrainian offensive to recapture occupied territories, the Russian occupation authorities began evacuating civilians south of the area surrounding the occupation forces-controlled Zaporizhia nuclear power plant.
The Czech Republic is supplying two anti-aircraft systems to Ukraine
The Czech Republic surrendered two Soviet 2K12 Kub anti-aircraft missile systems to Ukraine. The delivery includes a “relatively large number of missiles,” said Czech President Petr Pavel. Ukraine can use this technology immediately because its soldiers are familiar with it. The system can, for example, protect armored formations against attacks from the air. As a further possibility, the ex-general brought up considerations to provide Kiev with light Aero L-159 fighter jets.
Zelenskyy: Russian tyranny will not prevail anywhere
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy promised his compatriots that he would drive the Russian occupiers completely out of the country with foreign support. “We will not surrender a single piece of our country to the enemy – tyranny will not reign anywhere,” said Zelenskyy in his nightly video address on Wednesday. “Let’s not forget that every day the occupier is on our land is a temptation for him to believe that he will succeed,” said Zelenskyy. “He won’t succeed! We must bring back freedom, security and Europe to the whole Ukrainian land.”
The reconstruction of the war-torn country is already being prepared with foreign aid, said Zelenskyj – from business and industry to armaments, energy, infrastructure and education to social and health care. “Now, in May, we will finalize the specific points of these state programs, and in June we will work on our plans with our (foreign) partners,” said Zelenskyy. “Here, in Ukraine, the world will see what Europe is capable of.”
