After a hiatus in June, Bachmut has once again become the scene of some of the bloodiest fighting of the war, according to the British Ministry of Defence. At the same time, Ukraine is said to be recapturing villages in the area.
Bachmut, located in the northern part of the Donetsk region, used to be the site of some of the most intense fighting.
After a lull in June, the fighting seems to have picked up again. The British Ministry of Defense writes in its latest situation update on the war that some of the most intense fighting is taking place at the front.
Ukraine is said to have achieved success both north and south of the city in the ongoing counter-offensive. The American think tank ISW describes how images show that Ukraine has retaken villages.
“Puts pressure on the enemy”
Yesterday, a spokesman for the military stated that Ukraine had advanced more than a kilometer at Bachmut.
“The defense forces continue to hold the initiative there, put pressure on the enemy, conduct offensive operations, advance along the northern and southern flanks,” said Serhiy Cherevatyi, spokesman for the Eastern Forces, according to Reuters.
Although Bachmut has great symbolic importance for Russia, as it is one of the places where Russian forces have achieved success in the past year, there are likely to be few reserves available for the fighting, writes the British Ministry of Defense further.
This weekend, Poland also stated that it is sending around 1,000 soldiers to the country’s eastern border due to the Wagner group’s presence in neighboring Belarus, reports Sky News.
Zelenskyy visited historic snake island
Today it has been 500 days since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. To pay tribute to the soldiers, Zelensky visited the famous island of Zmijiny, better known as snake island.
The island became famous after Ukrainian soldiers refused to surrender at the start of the war, despite orders from a Russian warship. Russia then took control of the island, before it was recaptured by Ukraine.
In a clip published on Telegram, Zelenskyy describes how it is proof that Ukraine will recapture all of its territory, CNN reports.
– I want to thank from here, from this place of victory, each of our soldiers during these 500 days, says Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the clip.
Returned from Turkey with prisoners of war
Zelenskyy returned to Ukraine on Saturday after his visit to Turkey. In a video clip, the president announced that five commanders, who were with the defenders of the Azovstal steel plant in the Ukrainian city of Mariupol, returned to the country with the same plane.
When Russia took control of the city earlier this spring, over 2,000 Ukrainian soldiers who defended the steel mill were taken into Russian captivity. The five commanders were then released in a prisoner exchange and taken to Turkey, which they have now left with the president.