The bulk of Russia's elite paramilitary force has been engaged in fierce fighting in Ukraine's strategically vital Donbas region.
With recent battles raging around better-known cities like Kharkiv and Kherson, the fight in Bakhmut hasn't gotten the attention it deserves.
Bakhmut, a city of less than 100,000, has withstood artillery barrages, aerial bombardments and the continued presence of the Wagner Group. Yet the Russians may regain the strategic initiative if the heavily fortified city falls to Putin's private army.
The devastation in parts of the city is near total. The only remaining hospital handles a constant influx of Ukrainian casualties.
The Post has more on the dire situation and what it means for the broader war:
Further, emerging developments indicate that the situation is deteriorating for the Ukrainians, as Russian Wagner Group mercenaries and other aligned forces intensify offensive pressure and make incremental gains with the intent of enveloping the city. Wagner and other personnel in the area have recently been reinforced by conventional Russian soldiers rerouted from the southern city of Kherson and the possible future arrival of mobilised forces. Wagner itself has been replenishing its losses and building its ranks through public recruitment activities and the hiring of prison inmates.
Even with the newly-arrived reinforcements in place, the group continues to play a leading role in the campaign, and there is no doubt that the organisation's controversial leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, wants it to be his men having their photos taken in the town square if or when Bakhmut is taken. Some Western commentators have asserted that the Russians are suffering heavy losses only to capture a city they view as strategically insignificant. But the response by the Ukrainian military and simple geography seem to disprove this narrative. Ukraine has been pouring reinforcements into Bakhmut to prevent Russia from opening the gateway to the next major defensive line, which includes the cities of Kramatorsk and Slovyansk. On 6th December, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited the latter of these two cities, in part to boost morale and ease anxieties about Russian advances.If Wagner spearheads a successful campaign with this objective— after months of humiliating blunders, losses, and setbacks for Russia — it would provide a considerable military and political victory for the Kremlin and elevate the ‘Orchestra's' standing in Moscow.
A win here for Russia would likely reverberate across the globe, especially for the Wagner Group, which reportedly operates across Syria and large expanses of Africa.
Will tyranny and oppression prevail in Bakhmut, and will Putin be able to extend his reach across the globe? Only time will tell.
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Putin is not ‘reaching across the globe’ when he is defending Russians on his own border. The U.S. and their bulldog NATO have provoked this war with continual provocations against Russia since 2014. Ukraine will become demilitarized and effectively cease to exist and become part of Russia where they belong. Ukraine IS Russia.
Well, if Ukraine is Russia, as you put it, why did it part company when The Soviet Union dissolved? Why didn’t it stay with Russia? Why didn’t Russia remain “friends” with Ukraine? Seems to me like, ever since Putin has come to power in Russia, he has been taunting NATO. Just a few years ago he took parts of Ukraine (the good ones, I’ll bet) and why did they fight back if “Russia are them”, anyway? Lots of Questions about your rant their Dave. Maybe you should have supported Russia invading Ukraine better than, “oh, NATO provoked them.” Maybe Russia should cease to exist and do the whole world a favor. Ever since the “revolution”, they have been raising H E double toothpicks with anyone who lets them.
Liberty will prevail if Wagner and Putin win. Ukraine is controlled by and supported by globalists who are the ones pushing lgbt propaganda into preschools, pushing open borders, and doing everything we consider evil. While Putin and the Russians are not necessarily on the side of pro freedom White Europeans, they just banned lgbt propaganda to kids, says Russia should embrace Christianity, and doesn’t support the massive influx of illegals into Europe. Pro Freedom people rather have the globalists out of power in Ukraine and Ukraine not be able to be used by Biden’s and Soros’ cronies. It’s sad Ukrainian citizens are forced into the military to serve a literal globalist President. Many hate Russians because they think of how evil the Soviet communists were. Russia is not the same even though they repeat anti German WW2 propaganda.
It would be a good thing if Putin’s Wagner Group of criminals and mercenaries got annihilated and wiped out by the Ukrainians.
Put me on the cheering squad for Ukraine. There is no way Russia comes out looking good on their unprovoked attack on Ukraine, as Putin and his lackeys continue to go down in defeat. The Putin-leaning Russians are just proving themselves murderous bastards that well deserve the shellacking they are getting in Ukraine.
Those that support war, killing, death, also are the war machine manufacturing supporters. This is only about money, power, control, and death. Now the war machine manufacturers in the USA will get even more contracts to replace all the used up ammo, weapons, missiles, rockets . T the tune of tens of billions of dollars. All funded by the nations debt card on the taxpayers backs. While they get people to argue over whose fault it is, who is going to win or lose. While they laugh at us due to their attack and divide the nation worked again.