NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Wednesday that the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut might fall to Russian forces in the “coming days” as the Russian mercenary outfit Wagner Group claimed more gains in the battle.
“We cannot rule out that Bakhmut may eventually fall in the coming days,” Stoltenberg told reporters in Stockholm. He added that Bakhmut falling would not “necessarily reflect any turning point of the war” as Western officials are downplaying the idea that a Ukrainian defeat in the city would be a major setback.
Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the Wagner Group, said the mercenaries had taken control of the entire eastern district of Bakhmut, which is separated from the western areas by a small river. “Everything east of the Bakhmutka River is completely under the control of the Wagner PMC,” he said on Telegram, according to the Russian news agency TASS.
Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said Tuesday that if Russian forces take Bakhmut, they can push further into Ukrainian-controlled areas of the region. “The city is an important hub for defending Ukrainian troops in the Donbas. Taking it under control will allow further offensive actions to be conducted deep into Ukraine’s defensive lines,” he said.
Ukrainian officials have hinted in recent weeks at a possible withdrawal from Bakhmut, but President Volodymyr Zelensky said Monday that his generals want to keep fighting for the city. Zelensky reaffirmed in an interview with CNN that aired Wednesday that Ukrainian forces will keep defending Bakhmut.
The Kyiv Independent recently spoke with Ukrainian soldiers who were fighting on the front in Bakhmut. The report said they spoke of “unprepared, poorly-trained battalions being thrown into the front line meat grinder to survive as best they could with little support from armored vehicles, mortars, artillery, drones and tactical information.”
A few days, a week – who knows. They should all send a card to Zelensky: “Wish you were here!”
*yawn* but not a word about the ongoing CIA coup attempt in Georgia…
To my surprise CIA Avril Hines commented on Russian operations that sounded almost like Zelenski propaganda. I expected miore professionalism, more estraint. And political statements regarding Russia’s capabilities are of no value to legislators. They can just read CNN over the top shills vying for attentionz.
Quote from Kiev Independent confirms Lt Col Doug McGregour’s predictions of how the war is going for Ukraine. He can be followed on UTube.
The year is 2077. The surface of the planet is an irradiated waste. Yet somewhere, in a deep and cold bunker, Colonel McGregor still warns the Russians will take Odessa at any moment…
Бахмут (Артемовск) is in some ways like the Siege of Bastogne and
somewhat like Stalingrad. Bastogne was a major crossroads with 7 roads leading in and 7 roads leading out.
Even Zelensky now admits that Бахмут (Артемовск)
is a key doorway to liberating all of Donetsk Oblast. The Бахмут
caldron will devolve into a Stalingrad for Ukraine sooner than later.
Just as General Friedrich Paulus and the German 6th Army was lost with over 800,000 casualties; Ukrainian military casualties are on a World War One scale with a kill ratio of 10 Ukrainians for each Russian KIA.
Regardless of pronouncements by Lloyd J Austin minimizing the importance of Бахмут (Артемовск) the city and area is of key importance in this military situation.
The US and NATO now strongly suggest that the Ukrainian military can use 50% of the hardware dedicated to a spring offensive can now be used in a counterattack on Бахмут (Артемовск).
Z’s bloody knuckle grip on bakhmut seems more about politics than strategy. He pours in more troops to die, because it’s a slippery slope when you give an inch of ground. The Russian strategic withdrawals to stronger positions awhile back was spun hard by CNN as successful Ukrainian counter offensives. I suspect Russia could have taken bakhmut long ago, but can wait on victory as long as Z keeps wasting his fighters and resources there.
This is not the first war that the US has lost but it maybe the last unless they are dumb enough to pick a military fight with China and Iran.
The Russians should train Russian speaking Ukrainians to fight and win the war against Zelensky’s war that Biden is supporting. Zelensky, Biden and many other current and former politicians should go to the ICC for the rest of their lives or go to Gitmo for the rest of their lives.
Nothing the US Govt or its mouthpieces the MSM has ever been the truth since I can remember
If the masses know how badly they are being screwed the Govt would have a big problem These constant eternal wars are going to.be the death of all living things in search of power and profit What would Jesus or Buddah think or say.
NATO, Russia and Ukraine talking about this like actual people aren’t involved. Show some dead people.
NATO chief says squat, as usual.
https://www.armstrongeconomics.com/international-news/ukraine/zelenskys-corruption/
Zelensky’s Corruption
https://iz.ru/1481026/2023-03-09/ssha-ne-planiruiut-obuchat-ukrainskikh-letchikov-pilotirovaniiu-f-16?
The United States does not plan to train Ukrainian pilots to pilot the F-16
White House: US does not plan to train Ukrainian pilots to pilot F-16
Americans piloting the F-16 and F-15EX would sustain a decent life in Russia’s Altai Republic with minimal prison exposure.
https://www.baesystems.com/en/product/tornado-gr4
I’ve not read any stories to suggest that Britain or Germany will deploy their Tornado fighter jets. Both nations are deploying Challenger and Leopard tanks to Poland.
It suggests their respective diplomatic relations with Moscow is similar to Russia-US relations.
The sooner they take Kiev the bigger the humiliation. Not to mention end this pointless suffering.
Bakhmut is just Sour Grapes as in Aesop’s fable from the 6th Century BC.
Called vital when claiming to win, called worthless by the same people when they lose.
The fact that the Russians are fighting in a a meat grinder 13 months after invading Ukraine is proof of the failure of the Russian invasion. In an asymmetric war of national resistance the invader must conquer, occupy and pacify the country by destroying the indigenous resistance. The indigenous defender prevails by surviving and continuing to resist. The fact that the battle of Bakhmut occurred is proof that the Ukrainian are winning the war.
The Wagner is a unit of highly patriotic, highly trained special force of volunteers. They have been very successful so far in defeating the Galacian Nazi battalions. Russia has still in reserve their main force exsisting of some 300,000 men behind the lines. Once the Galacians are defeated the main Russian forces will clean up the remnants of what is left of the Galacians That is a very, very smart policy as it saves lives of the main force that were called up to serve their country. The Russian speaking ethnic Russians will then be strong enough to defend their own territories.m,