As Russian forces attack Bakhmut in waves, Donetsk province has experienced one of the bloodiest battles for months.
“Bakhmut is experiencing dynamic fighting all the time…the situation is critical,” Ukrainian NV Radio reported Vice Commander Volodymyr Nazarenko as saying.
On Saturday, Ukraine and Russia claimed hundreds of enemy troops had been killed over the past 24 hours in the fight Kyiv has been fending off unabating attacks, and a river that bisects the town has become the new front line.
Among the wounded in Bakhmut are more than 300 pro-Moscow troops, says Ukrainian military spokesperson Serhiy Cherevatyi. According to the Russian defense ministry, up to 210 Ukrainian soldiers were killed on the Donetsk frontline.
In the wake of intense fighting in eastern Ukraine for months, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg warned that Bakhmut could fall to Russian forces in the days to come.
Russian mercenaries Wagner, which has spearheaded the attack on Bakhmut, announced that they have taken possession of the eastern bank of the industrial town that has been devastated since Moscow invaded.
As part of Russia’s more than year-long invasion of Ukraine, which has devastated a great deal of Ukraine and displaced millions of people, the intense fighting around area has been the longest and bloodiest.
“We see Russian forces throwing more troops into many areas, and any shortfall in quantity is more than compensated for in quantity,” Stoltenberg told reporters in Stockholm.
“This does not necessarily reflect a turning point in the war. We cannot rule out Bakh-mut falling in the coming days.” the leader of the US-led military alliance said.
“This may not necessarily mark any turning point in the war,” the alliance’s head said, adding “this is not necessarily indicative of a turning point in the war”.
One of the bloodiest and longest battles of the year-long war took place in the eastern Donetsk town of Bakhmut. Although Moscow did not specify Bakhmut casualties, it is now almost deserted.
While it is difficult to independently verify the exact number of casualties in Bakhmut, both sides have admitted to suffering and inflicting significant losses.
It was reported on Saturday that the Wagner mercenary group has taken control of most of Bakhmut’s eastern part – an advance that the group’s founder Yevgeny Prigozhin claimed on Wednesday.
According to the British Defence Ministry’s daily intelligence briefing, the Bakhmutka River marks the front line in the city center.
It was Ukraine’s commander in Bakhmut who said its protection was key to a Ukrainian counter-strike, insinuating that it was holding on in Bakhmut and giving a “decent rebuff” to Russian forces.
On Saturday, Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi was quoted by the military as stating that reserves must be accumulated before a counterattack can be launched.
A Russian statement claims that seizing Bakhmut will be opening for Moscow to seize the entire Donbas industrial region, one of Moscow’s primary targets. According to Kyiv, Russia’s best units are being ground down by the battle.
The city’s administrative center is on the west side of the Bakhmutka River, 1.2 Kilometres (0.75 miles) away from Prigozhin.
Having the river running through some open ground, British intelligence reported that “this area has been transformed into a killing zone, likely making it very difficult for Wanger forces to advance westward.”
Yet Ukrainian forces continued to face dangerous conditions.
Despite Russian attempts to outflank the Ukrainian force from the north and south, the Ukrainian force and supply lines to the West remain vulnerable.