Russian forces have once again announced that they have completely captured the devastated Bakhmut, meanwhile, Ukraine has informed that its army is moving forward to encircle the Russians, writes Reuters.
On the 20th of May, Russia reported that it had completely captured Bakhmut, which would mean the end of the longest and bloodiest battle of the more than year-long war. However, on Sunday, the 21st of May, the leadership of the Ukrainian army indicated that its forces still control a small part of Bakhmut, which could allow them to re-enter the city when the situation changes. The commander of the Ukrainian ground forces, Colonel-General Oleksandr Syrsky, in a statement on the Telegram, informed that
the Ukrainians have approached the Russian positions in the suburbs and are trying to tactically surround the city.
Over the past 24 hours, Russia has not relaxed its attacks on Bakhmut, shelling both the city and the village of Ivanivshke on its western side.
On the evening of the 21st of May, the owner of the Wagner group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, said in an audio message on Telegram that his group’s work in the city has been completed, and it plans to leave Bakhmut in the next few days. “Wagner today captured no territory. We have captured all the territory we promised to capture, right up to the last centimeter. As we stated yesterday. We are handing over our positions to (Russia’s) Defense Ministry and on the 25th (of May) we are leaving the conflict zone.”
According to military experts, Bakhmut has no strategic importance, while Moscow claims that its capture would provide a springboard for further attacks.
Ukraine has managed to make gains in the last week, and Russia has admitted that its soldiers have retreated in some areas. Kyiv has informed that its purpose was to
draw the Russians away from other points of the front line, to cause heavy losses
and to weaken the defense capabilities of the occupiers.
The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, came to the G7 summit in Japan on the 21st of May, and compared the scenes unfolding in the city to the view of Hiroshima after the atomic bomb explosion. “I’ll tell you openly: Photographs of ruined Hiroshima absolutely remind me of Bakhmut and other similar settlements. Nothing left alive, all the buildings ruined,” said Zelensky and added that Russia has not occupied Bakhmut.
The participants of the G7 summit reiterated that they will not back down from supporting Ukraine. Zelenskyi also met with US President Joe Biden in Hiroshima and then stated that he was sure that Ukraine would receive F-16 fighter jets from Western countries. Biden pointed out that the modern fighters would not only help Ukraine with the recovery of Bakhmut, but would also be very important in the future development of events.
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