Ex-FSB officer attacks Kremlin: Putin "has already lost the battle for Bakhmut"
Created: 2023-01-09 16:02
By: Christian Stör
Igor Girkin speaks of a "strategic defeat" of the Russian troops in Bakhmut.
The Russian nationalist once again attracts attention with critical words.
Moscow - The fighting in eastern Ukraine continues to escalate.
Especially in the north of the Donetsk region around the city of Bakhmut ,
a relentless battle has been raging for months, which is associated with high losses on both sides, writes
fr.de.
"Bakhmut is holding out," said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in his daily video address on Sunday (January 8).
Russian troops have been trying to capture Bakhmut since September.
For the Russian armed forces, the city has become a prestige object during the Ukraine war, which they want to conquer at any price.
Heavy fighting is also raging in neighboring Soledar.
"This is one of the bloodiest places on the front," Zelenskyj described the area around the two small towns, which are only 14 kilometers apart.
Like Bakhmut, which has been contested for months, Soledar is part of the Ukrainian defensive wall in front of the conurbation between Sloviansk and Kramatorsk.
The Russian attacks are led by members of the notorious Wagner mercenary group.
Former separatist leader Igor Girkin.
(Archive image) © Photomig/dpa
Igor Girkin: Putin's troops have already lost in Bakhmut
The Russian nationalist Igor Girkin, however, appears unimpressed by the fighting.
The former officer of the Russian secret service FSB, who has recently criticized the Russian conduct of the war more and more often, already sees the battle as lost.
"Even if our troops achieve a tactical victory," Girkin told Telegram, "we have already lost strategically." Girkin criticized that Russia is concentrating its best forces and means on an unworthy object, while other goals in Ukraine are far more important.
In addition to the Russian general staff, Girkin also accused the Wagner group and its leader Yevgeny Prigozhin.
"The commander who allows his soldiers to be so clumsily and fruitlessly wasted (even if acting under orders) can by no means be considered a good military leader," explained Girkin.
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The Wagner group itself, meanwhile, is trying to blame the Russian Ministry of Defense for the lack of progress in Bakhmut.
The mercenaries complained in a video clip that there were not enough armored vehicles, ammunition and grenades to break through the defense lines in Bakhmut.
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Bachmut is also extremely important for Ukraine.
According to Zelenskyy, the commander of the Ukrainian army will take over the city's defense.
Olexandr Syrskyj is considered a hero in Ukraine, credited with the successes in defending Kyiv and recapturing the Kharkiv region.
(cs/dpa)