KYIV: Russia’s defense ministry has denied reports that Ukrainian soldiers have advanced on the front line in east Ukraine, Western media reported on Friday.
Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Wagner mercenary group fighting on the Russian side, blamed regular Russian forces of abandoning positions around Bakhmut. Russian military bloggers reported Ukrainian advances or forces movements in several areas on Thursday. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said it was too early to begin a counteroffensive.
Zelensky said in a recent interview that Ukrainian forces could go forward and they could be successful. But, he added, Ukraine would lose many people. It is unacceptable and therefore, Kyiv would need a bit more time.
The expected attack could be decisive in the fighting, redrawing frontlines that have remained unchanged for months. It would also be an important test for Ukraine, eager to prove that the equipment and weapons it has received from the West can result in considerable battlefield gains.
Advancement reports on social media
Russia’s defense ministry said in a statement that the general situation in the special military operation zone was under control. Western officials estimate that between 20,000 and 30,000 Russian soldiers have been killed or wounded at Bakhmut, while Ukraine’s military has also paid a heavy price.
Russia’s defense ministry also said it had repulsed several Ukrainian attacks throughout Thursday and that ongoing fighting near Malynivka in eastern Donetsk involved air and artillery forces.
Since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24 last year, thousands of civilians and combatants have been killed or wounded, cities and towns have been destroyed in the war, and about 8.2 million Ukrainians have been registered as refugees in Europe, with 2.8 million of them in Russia.
