Ukraine not only holding back Russian offensive, but preparing to ‘turn tide of war’ says brigadier-general
Drapatyi said that now that Ukraine’s forces have gained a strategic advantage in Kherson Oblast, the Ukrainian army will create the prerequisites for a general victory.
Read also: Ukrainian forces conduct counteroffensive near Bakhmut, NYT reports
Bakhmut remains one of the hot spots where the fiercest fighting continues. The Russians are throwing all their forces into attempting a breakthrough and encirclement of the Donetsk Oblast town.
Fighting at Bakhmut has been going on since July 2022. The Ukrainian military’s General Staff reports that the Russian army continues to try to surround and capture the city, but its assaults are unsuccessful. The Russian invaders threw trained units of the Wagner private military company and other regular units of the Russian army into efforts to capture the town.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov estimated the Russian invaders’ daily losses in the battles for Bakhmut at 500 people killed and wounded.
Read also: Ukraine intends to hold Bakhmut, Zelenskyy says
As the situation in Bakhmut became increasingly challenging for the Ukrainian military, Kyiv dispatched additional reinforcements there, Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister, Hanna Malyar, told Ukrainian TV broadcasters on Feb. 28. She said the decision to hold Bakhmut is purely military, and not political.
U.S think tank the Institute for the Study of War also believes that the Russian occupation forces will not be able to force the Ukrainian troops to retreat from Bakhmut in the near future, although they have secured a positional advantage in certain areas of the city.
Earlier, the spokesperson for the Eastern Group of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Serhiy Cherevaty, said that there was no mass withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from the city of Bakhmut going on, but a planned rotation of defense units.
We’re bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron!
Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
