Moscow wants to encircle this brutal fighting-ravaged city as Kiev raises a flag on the left bank of the Dnieper
The capture of Bakhmut, a strategic communications hub that has resisted since the beginning of the war, has become the immediate goal of the Russian military. This appears to be inferred from the troop movements yesterday attempting to encircle this city in the Donetsk region from the north and south, which some Western strategists consider almost disproportionate due to the size of the resources used and the harshness of the to fight. . “There is a realistic possibility that the capture of Bakhmut has become primarily a symbolic and political goal for Russia,” the British Defense Ministry suggested yesterday, based on analyst reports.
According to them, “Russian forces continue to expend much of their total military effort and firepower along a sector about ten miles long on the entrenched front” of the city. Contrary to Kiev’s remarks about the “insignificance” of the square on the overall Donbas chessboard, Moscow offers the opposite story. He believes that the capture of Bakhmut not only strengthens his position in the region, but also threatens Kramatorsk and Sloviansk, two local army strongholds reached by a road network that would be under Russian control.
The situation in Bakhmut is “desperate”, according to statements from the army and rescue teams. The constant artillery duel to which the troops of both sides are subjected and the frontal attacks with which the invaders gauge the resistance of the defenses have led to a “slaughter” that is even dealt with hand in hand. The trenches are barely passable because of the mud. Some media calculate that as many as 250 people are killed every day due to the brutality of the fighting. And the Ukrainians, who have been defending the position for nine months, believe that what the invading troops, fueled by numerous mercenaries from the Wagner Company, really want is to completely destroy their infrastructure.
The president himself, Volodímir Zelensky, acknowledged yesterday after a meeting with his officials that the scenario in this critical part of Donetsk is “the most painful” and one of the most dramatic since the beginning of the war. “We are doing everything we can to help our boys. Our heroes, who support the defense there, deserve the greatest thanks,” he exclaimed in his usual late-night speech.
The violence is so extensive that Wagner circles boast that Bakhmut is known as the “meat grinder.” The General Staff, according to journalistic information, sees “the capture of Slovyansk and Kramatorsk” as very feasible, although “we must first take Bakhmut and its surroundings.” “The (Ukrainian) enemy will be forced to retreat from the fields and overgrown forest plantations to urban areas” where it would be most exposed. “Either that, or he will be expelled,” military sources insisted after announcing the capture of a new nearby city: Kurdyumovka. “From there you can even see the outskirts of Kramatorsk; this is just over 30 kilometers in a straight line.”
Experts believe that the Kremlin’s commitment to this enclave is due to the need of its president, Vladimir Putin, to offer the Russians (and the international community) a victory that can pass for the might of his military and that the invasion is not going as badly as recent counter-offensives indicate.
However, this victory does not disguise the difficulties Russian forces in Kherson are experiencing in holding their positions on the edge of the Dnieper, or the fierce clashes in Zaporizhia, where pro-Russian authorities are beginning to plan for a partial evacuation of civilians and the Russians build new fortified defenses in a constant fight against rain and mud. The Ukrainians managed to cross the river yesterday, which seemed unthinkable three weeks ago, and planted a national flag on top of a crane on the Russian-occupied left bank of the Dnieper.
Source: La Verdad
I am an experienced and passionate journalist with a strong track record in news website reporting. I specialize in technology coverage, breaking stories on the latest developments and trends from around the world. Working for Today Times Live has given me the opportunity to write thought-provoking pieces that have caught the attention of many readers.
