Prigozhin says the Russian advance will depend on whether Ukraine sends more soldiers to the front.
In the same announcement, he criticizes Russia’s military leadership for being hugely bureaucratic. Prigozhin believes this was instrumental in Russia not gaining control of Donetsk county in 2022.
– The advance is not going as fast as we would like. I think Bakhmut would be taken before the New Year if it weren’t for our huge military bureaucracysays Prigozhin.
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Cuts supply lines
In recent days, soldiers from the Wagner group have advanced north and south of the city and are threatening to surround it. All supply lines to Bakhmut are subject to Russian shelling, according to Ukraine.
– To take Bakhmut, you must cut off all supply lines. It is a significant task, says Prigozhin.
However, the advance has cost the Wagner Group dearly. According to Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Hanna Malyar, Wagner has lost 80 percent of the artillery units at Bakhmut.
– Evacuation of the dead and wounded happens rarely or not at all, according to Maylar Kyiv Independent.
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Spokesperson Serhiy Cherevatyj in the Ukrainian defense said on Wednesday that Russia had lost 119 soldiers and that 163 had been wounded in the previous 24 hours.
Russian forces have been trying for several months to capture the city, which before the war had around 70,000 inhabitants. On Tuesday, it was said from the Ukrainian side that fewer than 5,000 civilians remain.
WARNING STRONG IMPRESSIONS: Shocking video shows Wagner soldier being executed with a sledgehammer
