The Ukrainian city of Bakhmout, the scene of fierce fighting for months, is not ready to fall despite recent Russian advances, estimated Tuesday February 14 the boss of the paramilitary organization Wagner, Evguéni Prigojine, evoking a butchery.
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"
We won't be partying anytime soon
," Yevgeny Prigojine said, according to his Telegram news service.
"
Bahmut will not be taken tomorrow, because there is strong resistance, shelling, the meat grinder is in action
," he added referring to the heavy casualties on the battlefield.
The Ukrainian “fortress”
Wagner, who has recruited thousands of prisoners to fight in Ukraine, has led the assault on Bakhmout since the summer and recently captured a series of nearby settlements in an attempt to encircle the city.
“
The adversary is active and sends new reserves all the time.
Every day, between 300 and 500 fighters arrive in Bakhmout from everywhere, the artillery fire is increasing every day
,” said Yevgeny Prigojine.
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The head of the Russian occupation in the Ukrainian region of Donetsk, where Bakhmout is located, Denis Pushilin, told him that Ukraine gave no sign of wanting to cede the city, which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described as a "
fortress
".
“
We fully understand that there is currently no prospect of the adversary abandoning their positions without a fight
,” he said according to Russian media.
City symbol of struggle
A city of some 70,000 inhabitants before the Russian offensive a year ago, Bakhmout was largely destroyed by more than six months of fighting that caused heavy casualties on both sides.
While its strategic importance is disputed, the city has acquired a status as a symbol of the struggle between Moscow and kyiv for control of the industrial region of Donetsk.
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The Ukrainian presidency admitted on Monday February 13 a “
complicated
” situation in the village of Paraskoviïvka, about ten kilometers from the center of Bakhmout, which “
faces intense bombardments and assaults
” Russian.
Denis Pushilin, said Friday, February 10 that Moscow troops now had under their control three of the four Ukrainian supply routes to Bakhmout.