The battle for the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut continues even after it is said to have been taken by Russian troops. The battle for the spot has been going on for eight months now. According to the founder of the mercenary group Wagner, the city, which used to have 70,000 inhabitants, is now completely occupied. “Today around noon, Bakhmut was fully occupied,” Yevgeny Prigozhin announced on Saturday.
Later, the regular army also announced the conquest. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the awarding of medals. However, the situation does not appear to be as clear-cut as the Kremlin’s propagandists claim. The Ukrainian army is still defending the city. “Our soldiers keep fortifications and some buildings in the southwest of the city,” army group East spokesman Serhiy Cherevatyy told Ukrainian television on Sunday. However, he admitted that the situation was critical and that fighting was fierce.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also contradicted Moscow’s claim that Bakhmut had been completely captured. “Bachmut is not occupied by Russia today,” he said at the G7 summit in Hiroshima on Sunday. “As of now, our lawyers are in control of some industrial and infrastructure facilities in the area and the private sector,” Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar said.
Can surprising tactics turn the tide?
But what else can Ukrainian troops do in the few outskirts of the city? What are their tactics? This is hotly debated among military strategists. Some see Ukraine’s struggle for Bakhmut as an unnecessary waste of people and material. Especially since the city is considered to be of little military-strategic importance, only its symbolic value is now beyond dispute.
As the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reports in a report on the current situation, the capture of Bakhmut “would not represent a significant territorial gain for the Russian army either: Russia would not be able to continue its own offensive operations from there or to launch a Ukrainian counter-attack.” offensive.”
“We no longer have easy questions or easy answers,” Zelenskyj said on the sidelines of the G7 summit about whether Ukraine was burning its soldiers in Bakhmut. And referring to the Kremlin ruler, he added: “Because we have a rather difficult neighbor who is a criminal, even a terrorist. A rather difficult enemy.”
“200 meters ahead in some sections”
The Ukrainian president gave at least one indication of how to deal with this “difficult enemy”: “with cleverness”. The Ukrainian armed forces have repeatedly shown their cleverness in this war, which has now been going on for 15 months. So it stands to reason that they could also try an unusual tactic in Bachmut.
This tactic could be encirclement. Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Maljar announced that Ukrainian troops had succeeded in advancing on the flanks. The army has taken several mountain ranges, making it difficult for the Russians to stay in Bakhmut. The Ukrainians have a strategically important position on the hills, because from there they can more easily survey the terrain and identify Russian positions.
Ukrainian troops have already formed a semicircle around the city, she wrote on Telegram yesterday. Serhiy Cherevatyi also stressed, “The enemy continues to be attacked and destroyed every day by massive artillery and air strikes.”
The spokesperson for Army Group East also spoke out again last night. According to him, the army continued to advance near Bakhmut. “Especially in the last 24 hours, we have advanced about 200 meters on some stretches,” Cherevatyj said on Ukrainian television. The Ukrainian army has been advancing near the city all week.
The supply lines are still in Ukrainian hands
Oleksandr Syrskij, commander of the Ukrainian land forces, had already given the first indication of the encirclement tactics last week. “After Bachmut, the Wagner mercenaries crawled like rats in a mousetrap,” said the 57-year-old.
After the alleged capture of the city in the Donbass, Wagner boss Prigozhin announced that he wanted to withdraw his men by Thursday. After that, the regular Russian troops would defend the occupied city on their own.
Just a distraction?
However, according to ISW analyses, Ukrainian supply lines are still intact after Bakhmut. These would first have to be cut down by Russian troops. In addition, the flanks would have to be secured to ensure the complete capture of the city and further offensive actions on Ukrainian territory. However, for this, the Russian armed forces needed more support – not less, as would be the case after the supposed withdrawal of the Wagner mercenaries.
As military analysts report, the Russian generals are already moving the 132nd Motor Rifle Division, a mechanized infantry brigade, to Bakhmut. The special forces were previously stationed in the city of Avdiivka and are now responsible for protecting the flanks around the city.
So even if the Ukrainians had been unable to encircle Bakhmut, their presence would have tied down key Russian troops, giving them more leeway to attack the “difficult enemy,” as President Zelenskyy Putin calls his soldiers elsewhere.
(t-online, cc)
Soource :Watson
I am Amelia James, a passionate journalist with a deep-rooted interest in current affairs. I have more than five years of experience in the media industry, working both as an author and editor for 24 Instant News. My main focus lies in international news, particularly regional conflicts and political issues around the world.
