Bakhmut, February 9: Ukrainian soldiers move to their positions on the front line.Image: AP / Libkos
International
Even if official bodies in the Ukraine continue to affirm that they have the city of Bakhmut in the east of the country under control: The status of the prestige project of the Russian Wagner group is bad.
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For months, the Wagner group, other Russian armed forces and Ukrainian units – even elite soldiers – have been fighting fiercely on the outskirts of the city. It is repeatedly reported that the toughest battles ever since the beginning of the Russian invasion are taking place in Bakhmut.
For the mercenaries of the Wagner group, the city is considered a prestige project. It’s not really strategically important. Yes in Russia they want to report successes by the anniversary of the invasion on February 24th. Taking Bakhmut would be such a success.
And apparently Ukraine is also preparing for the loss of the city.
New defense lines have been drawn in Donbass for weeks. The trenches are being pushed farther and farther back, as watson observed for himself in October, November and January. The path from the north-west to Bakhmut alone clearly shows these efforts by the Ukraine.
Bachmut can hardly be held
One of the main roads into Bachmut, the MO 3, has long been too dangerous for civilians to pass. Shortly after leaving the city of Sloviansk, construction work on the new defense line begins.
Image: Deepstatemap / Screenshot edited by watson.de
If you ask around about the civil aid, it is now clear: Bachmut is actually almost unstoppable. According to the latest information, civilians are no longer allowed to enter the city without a special permit. And that only in the company of the military.
This was also announced by the commander of the SARG tactical air reconnaissance group in Bakhmut.
Journalists and volunteers had previously traveled to the city on a regular basis. NGOs had them People provided with the most important relief supplies on site and continued to evacuate people. That is now hardly possible. In the city with once more than 70,000 inhabitants only a few thousand persevere.
The fire department has also withdrawn from the city.
The battle for Bakhmut is currently the bloodiest battle in Ukraine. According to information from both sides, there are high losses there. By capturing the city, Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin would come closer to his goal of bringing the entire Donetsk region under his control.
The Russian private army Wagner claimed on Sunday to have taken a suburb of Bakhmut and is now advancing towards the center. Initially, there was no comment from Kyiv.
The head of Wagner’s troops, Yevgeny Prigozhin, a close friend of Putin, reported that after storming the suburb of Krasna Hora, his fighters were now advancing on Bakhmut, seven kilometers away. Krasna Hora and the even smaller suburb of Paraskoviivka north of Bakhmut had already come under heavy fire in January. Watson had also experienced this himself in January.
Volunteers under fire near Paraskoviivka
According to the Ministry of Defense in Moscow, the troops are making progress. However, Ukrainian Commander-in-Chief Valeriy Zalushnyy emphasized: “Despite constant enemy pressure, we continue to control Bakhmut and take measures to stabilize the front line around this city.”
This costs human lives: According to British figures, Russia is losing more soldiers than it has since the early days of the war. “In the past two weeks, Russia has suffered probably its highest casualty rate since the first week of the invasion of Ukraine,” the British Defense Ministry said, citing statistics from the Ukrainian General Staff.
(With material from the dpa)
The EU promised further help to the Ukrainian President Zelenskyj after his visit to Brussels. On Friday, Russia again attacked Ukraine massively with drones and rockets, primarily targeting the energy infrastructure. Heavy and extremely bloody fighting is continuing, particularly in eastern Ukraine. Ukraine is demanding that the West supply fighter jets to defend itself against Russian airstrikes.
