Zelensky confirms the capture of the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut by Wagner and the Russian army

He President of Ukraine Volodimir Zelenskysaid this Sunday that he believes that bakhmut It is “no longer” in the hands of Ukraine, but his statements were ambiguous and he downplayed the city’s strategic importance by assuring that “nothing” remains and that the buildings are “destroyed”.

Zelensky made these statements in a meeting with US President Joe Bidenon the margins of the G7 in Hiroshima and to the question of the press whether Bakhmut was still in Ukrainian hands.

“I don’t think so,” Zelensky replied and, addressing the journalist who asked him, added: “What you have to understand is that there is nothing, they destroyed all the buildings. For now, Bakhmut only exists in our hearts. There is nothing. Well, many dead Russian soldiers, but they came before us.”

Zelensky expressed his gratitude to the Ukrainian soldiers who fought against Russian troops for eight months in the city of Bakhmut, which had a population of about 80,000 before the war and it is about 55 kilometers from the capital of the Donetsk region.

For his part, Russian President Vladimir Putin, this Sunday the army and the Russian group of mercenaries congratulated Wagner on the capture of Bakhmut. Putin has also praised the support and flanking cover of Russian Armed Forces troops to Wagner’s strike groups and announced awards for those who “excelled,” the Kremlin press service said. RBK.

The Russian Ministry of Defense has also officially reported the seizure of Bakhmut.

The head of the Wagner Group, Yevgeni Prigozhin, had already suggested this Saturday that Bakhmut, one of the main fronts of the war in Ukrainehad been captured by Russian forces in a statement immediately denied by the Ukrainian military.