Ukrainian forces pushed Russian troops back to regain territory in the embattled eastern city of Bakhmut, officials in Kyiv said, as Russia’s Defense Ministry acknowledged a flurry of attacks along the frontline.
(Bloomberg) — Ukrainian forces pushed Russian troops back to regain territory in the embattled eastern city of Bakhmut, officials in Kyiv said, as Russia’s Defense Ministry acknowledged a flurry of attacks along the frontline.
Russian troops around Bakhmut, which has been besieged in brutal running battles for almost a year, pulled back as much as 1.5 kilometers (0.9 miles) in some areas in a surge of clashes over the last 24 hours, Ukrainian military spokesman Serhiy Cherevatyi told Rada TV on Friday.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said its troops had withdrawn close to a reservoir north of Bakhmut to set up a new defensive line with more “favorable conditions.” Earlier, it said forces had repelled Ukrainian attacks involving some 1,000 troops and as many as 40 tanks along a 95-kilometer stretch of frontline near Soledar, a city some 15 kilometers northeast of Bakhmut.
But Yevgeny Prigozhin, the mercenary commander whose Wagner Group is fighting in the city said what the military did “is called running away, not regrouping.” He said Ukraine had retaken strategic highlands, potentially putting Russia’s control of Bakhmut at risk.
The fighting in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, which couldn’t be independently verified, fueled anticipation of a Ukrainian counteroffensive to regain territory captured by the Kremlin’s forces. Russia occupies most of Donetsk and has struggled to complete its seizure of Bakhmut.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who this week said his forces needed more time before launching any such offensive, also said Kyiv’s forces had pressed back Russian positions, without specifying where.
“Ukraine is much stronger now than last year or in any other year of this war for freedom and independence of our country,” Zelenskiy said in separate post on Twitter.
Wagner Target
Bakhmut, which had a prewar population of some 70,000, has been devastated by sustained fighting since last summer. The city has been a primary target of Prigozhin’s Wagner Group. In recent days, Prigozhin has issued increasingly threatening ultimatums to military leaders to send enough ammunition to complete the seizure of the city.
Read More: Wagner Chief Again Threatens Bakhmut Pullout Over Supplies
Ukraine’s “counteroffensive is moving full-steam ahead,” with units close to flanking Bakhmut, Prigozhin said in a Telegram message Thursday. He accused Russia’s regular army of abandoning positions in the area, leaving his unit at risk of being encircled.
Ukraine reported a surprise advance there on Wednesday, saying that Russian forces pulled back significantly in some areas near the city. Russian military bloggers flagged the move and Prigozhin’s comments to say Kyiv had finally launched its counteroffensive.
In a letter posted in his Telegram channel on Friday, Prigozhin reinforced his message that Ukraine has made advances on Wagner’s flanks. He taunted Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, writing: “I ask you to come to the territory of Bakhmut, which is controlled by Russian paramilitary units, to judge the situation yourself.”
–With assistance from Olesia Safronova.
(Updates with additional Prigozhin comments from fourth paragraph.)
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
©2023 Bloomberg L.P.