BLOODY BATTLE FOR BAKHMUT HOLDS UP UKRAINIAN OFFENSIVE

While NATO is preparing the Armed Forces of Ukraine for the decisive offensive on the Donbass front, the Wagner PMC is grinding reserves of the Ukrainian army in Bakhmut, allowing the units of the Russian Defense Ministry to gain time and prepare for the upcoming escalation. Wagner fighters have already secured their positions near the railway station and took control of the high-rise apartment buildings along Pushkin Street, as well as of the jail building. They continue their assault on the territorial military unit in the western part of the city. Heavy battle is ongoing at entrance to the city on the south-western outskirts, where Wagner assault units are storming Ukrainian strongholds near the Mig-17 monument. Russians are close to take control of the crossroad on Yubileinaya and Chaikovskoho streets. Wagner fighters are advancing along the streets of Pavel Novgoredtsev and Second Lesnaya. If they succeed, the Ukrainian garrison risks being surrounded. The Ukrainian military is in control of only about 10 % of Bakhmut. At the same time, they continue to repel Russian attacks on the city outskirts. Russian servicemen are close to cut the main road used for supply of the Ukrainian grouping near Khromovo but no Russian success in the area has been confirmed so far. Ukrainian forces can still send some military reinforcement to Bakhmut through the field roads on the south-western outskirts of the city. However, such maneuvers are complicated by bad weather and Russian artillery fire. As a result, Ukrainian losses are growing. The Ukrainian military command explains that defending Bakhmut is necessary to prevent Russian forces from breaking to the flank and rear of the Ukrainian garrisons in the Lisichansk and Donetsk regions. Ukrainian retreat from Bakhmut would reportedly pose a great threat for the entire Ukrainian defense in the Donbass. Despite the fact that about 80 thousand Ukrainian servicemen are deployed in the Bakhmut region, ready to fight the exhausted Russian units. Such claims cause no public surprise, since the Kiev regime is hiding the truth about the state of its garrison in the city. In fact, thousands of Ukrainian servicemen are dying in Bakhmut in order to cause at least some damage to the most professional Russian infantry, the Wagner PMC. The Ukrainian side is suffering more losses then well-trained Russian fighters despite the fact that the Russian Defense Ministry is yet to provide the PMC with necessary ammunition and descent support on the flanks. The persistence of the Ukrainian military, pushed by its NATO patrons, allows Wagner fighters to destroy the Ukrainian reserves necessary for the upcoming offensive. On the other hand, Russian success is only possible if the Russian Army takes all necessary measures to repel the attacks, which is yet to happen.