Battle for Bakhmut: Heavy Losses in Ukraine War
As the battle for Bakhmut continues, both Russia and Ukraine have reported inflicting heavy losses.
Moscow has been waging a months-long war of attrition against the eastern Ukrainian city.
According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, more than 1,100 Russian soldiers have died in the past few days, and many more have been seriously injured.
Russia stated that it had killed over 220 Ukrainian soldiers in the past day.
The BBC cannot confirm the numbers provided by either side.
According to analysts, Bakhmut has little strategic value, but it has become a focal point for Russian commanders who have struggled to provide the Kremlin with positive news.
Capturing the city would bring Russia closer to its objective of controlling the entire Donetsk region, one of four regions in eastern and southern Ukraine annexed by Russia in September following widely condemned sham referendums.
Mr. Zelensky stated in his nightly video address, “In less than a week, beginning March 6, we managed to kill over 1,100 enemy soldiers in the Bakhmut sector alone, Russia’s irreversible loss, right there, near Bakhmut.”
He added that 1,500 Russian soldiers were severely wounded and unable to continue fighting.
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More than 220 Ukrainian servicemen were killed, according to the Russian Ministry of Defense.
Col. Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi, commander of Ukraine’s ground forces, stated that the Russian mercenary Wagner Group was attacking his troops from multiple directions in an attempt to breach the defenses and advance to the central districts of the city.
The paramilitary organization is central to the Russian offensive against Bakhmut. Its leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, and his private army have staked their reputations on capturing Bakhmut.
He stated on Sunday that the city’s situation was “difficult, extremely difficult, and the enemy is fighting for every meter.”
In a voice recording shared on Telegram, he stated, “The fighting becomes more intense as the city center approaches.”
After the anticipated capture of Bakhmut, “we will begin to reboot” and “recruit new people from the regions,” he stated.
The Institute for the Study of War, a US think tank, reported on Saturday that Moscow’s offense had stalled.
“Wagner Group fighters are likely becoming increasingly hemmed in by urban areas… and are consequently finding it difficult to make significant advances,” the report stated.
Before the invasion, approximately 70,000 people lived in Bakhmut, but now only a few thousand remain. Historically, the city was renowned for its salt and gypsum mines and enormous wineries.
Ukraine, like Russia, has given Bakhmut political significance; President Zelensky has made the city an emblem of resistance.
During his December visit to Washington, he referred to the city as “the fortress of our morale” and presented the US Congress with a Bakhmut flag.
Officials from the West estimate that between 20,000 and 30,000 Russian soldiers have been killed or injured in and around Bakhmut.
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