Defence Ministry: Situation in Bakhmut difficult, reinforcements deployed
The decision to hold the city is strategic, not political.
Ukrainian Deputy Defence Minister Anna Malyar said in a televised marathon.
Malyar said:
There are professional and numerous Wagner units near Bakhmut. The enemy's losses are very high, many times higher than ours. Our soldiers can destroy up to 80% of terrorists.
She also noted that the commander of the Ground Forces, Aleksandr Syrsky, during a recent visit to the city, decided to move additional units into the city
Earlier, the Army reported that the Russian occupants were focusing their main efforts on seizing Bakhmut and encircling it. Fighting is taking place around the city itself and in its vicinity.
At the same time, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) suggested that defending Bakhmut was a strategically sound move:
The fighting around the city has forced Moscow to use most of the Wagner terrorist group and airborne units, and the defence of Bakhmut has depleted a significant Russian force and created favourable conditions for a future Ukrainian offensive, the ISW said.