While the Russian-Ukrainian confrontations continue, the founder of the private military group, “Wagner”, Yevgeny Prigozhin, announced that the Russian forces have only 2.5 kilometers to fully control Bakhmut, according to what was reported by the “TASS” news agency, today (Saturday). He said that the Ukrainian forces are well equipped with weapons in Bakhmut, and marches appeared for them, pointing out that they send daily between 400-600 people and lose the same number.
Prigozhin reported that Wagner units still had some capacity to advance into the city.
And his media office quoted him via Telegram as saying: Despite the severe shortage of shells, Wagner units advanced up to 170 meters in different directions and took control of 59.5 thousand square meters of the city.
He added that Ukraine still controls 2.52 square kilometers, stressing that his forces still have the ability to advance in Bakhmut until the end of May 9.
Prigozhin had revealed that “Wagner” would remain in its positions in Bakhmut until May 9, and then go out to the rear camps in order to heal the wounds and spare the fighters losses. He held (Friday), the Russian Army Chief of Staff, responsible for the tens of thousands of dead and wounded Russians in Ukraine.
For his part, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov accused his country’s partners of “reluctance” to provide it with long-range missiles, for fear of escalating the situation. He said, in statements reported by the Ukrainian News Agency, that Kiev seeks every time it receives weapons from abroad to convince its partners that the use of these weapons will be limited to the purposes of protection and self-defense in order to liberate the lands that Russia has controlled and not to target Russian lands.
In turn, the Ukrainian Deputy Minister of Defense warned that Moscow is planning, through Wagner fighters, to take control of the city of Bakhmut on May 9, which coincides with Russia’s annual celebration of Victory Day.
The advisor to the Ukrainian Minister of Defense, Yuri Sak, attributed the high intensity of the dispute between Wagner and the Russian Ministry of Defense to its inability to control Bakhmut, the heavy losses it and the Russian army suffered, and the approaching control of Bakhmut.
In a meeting with members of the National Security Council, Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the progress of preparations for the Victory Day celebrations, corresponding to the ninth of May.
The RIA Novosti agency quoted the Kremlin as saying that the parade will take place this year as planned, despite what it described as Ukraine’s attempt to assassinate the Russian president through the attack on one of the buildings of the Kremlin’s presidential compound.
