On Tuesday evening, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described the situation in Donetsk and Luhansk in the east of the country as difficult, acknowledging field gains for Russian forces.
On Tuesday, Zelensky referred to a “very difficult” situation in the east of the country in the face of the Russian forces, which in recent weeks have made field gains, especially near Bakhmut.
“The situation on the front line, especially in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, remains very difficult. It is literally a battle for every meter of Ukrainian territory,” the president said in his daily evening video address.
Bakhmut will not fall soon
For his part, the head of the Wagner Group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, confirmed that the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, the center of battles in the east of the country in recent months, will not fall soon despite the recent Russian progress.
And his media office posted on his Telegram channel: “We won’t be celebrating anytime soon” about the city’s fall.
He added, “Bakhmut will not be captured tomorrow because there is strong resistance and continuous bombardment. The meat grinder is working,” referring to the heavy losses on the battlefield.
The “Wagner” group has been leading the attack on Bakhmut since the summer and recently took control of a series of nearby towns in an attempt to surround the city.
Prigozhin continued: “The enemy is strengthening its ranks and constantly sending additional reservists. Every day, 300 to 500 fighters arrive in Bakhmut from everywhere, artillery fire intensifies daily.”
In turn, Denis Pushilin, a separatist leader in the Ukrainian region of Donetsk, where Pakhmut is located, said that Ukraine had shown no indication that it would give up the city, which President Zelensky described as a “fortress”.
He was quoted by Russian media as saying, “We realize that there is currently no possibility for the opponent to abandon his positions without a fight.”
The city of Bakhmut, which had a population of 70,000 before the war, was largely destroyed during the continuous fighting for more than six months, leaving heavy human losses on both sides.
Although its strategic importance is subject to controversy, the city has become a symbol of the struggle between Moscow and Kiev to control this industrial region in the east of the country.
For his part, the spokesman for the “eastern” command of the Ukrainian army, Sergei Cherevaty, said that “about five thousand residents” are still in Bakhmut, despite the danger.
On the other hand, several Ukrainian officials indicated that due to the deteriorating situation, access to Bakhmut was restricted to civilians, including members of humanitarian organizations and journalists.
“Only people who really need to enter Pakhmut are allowed to enter it,” Cherivati said.
“We are taking additional measures to evacuate all those who remain in the city,” said Pavlo Kirilenko, head of the Ukrainian military administration in Donetsk.
He pointed out that “the entire front line is being bombed continuously, the contact line and the towns behind it,” estimating that the situation is “difficult, but under control.”
