In its daily assessment of the Ukraine war, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) gave an overview of the embattled area of Bakhmut, which has, for months, been one of the most intense arenas of fighting in the war.
Russian forces in the region are being led by members of a notorious paramilitary unit, the Wagner Group, which was founded by Yevgeny Prigozhin, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The U.S. think tank said continued Russian offensive operations around Bakhmut are not incompatible with its standing assessment that the Russian offensive in the city is likely culminating—the point at which an attacking military force can no longer continue its advance.
The ISW noted that Colonel Serhiy Cherevaty, spokesperson for Ukraine’s Eastern Group of Forces, said on Wednesday that Ukrainian and Russian forces clashed on the ground 22 times in the past day and that Russian forces conducted over 238 artillery, Multiple Launch Rocket System, and tank strikes in the same period.
The think tank said it analyzed footage from the Ukrainian Border Guards Service on Wednesday that shows Ukrainian journalists driving into Soledar, in the Bakhmut region, “without fear of Russian fire.”
“Ukrainian soldiers in the video near Soledar said that Russian forces changed tactics and now throw infantry into battle without preparatory artillery fire, and that Ukrainian forces shoot 15-person Russian infantry groups from 20 meters away,” the ISW said.
“This apparent change in tactics suggests that Russian forces in the Soledar-Bakhmut area may be intensifying attempts to gain ground on the tactical level but remain unlikely to secure operationally significant terrain,” the ISW added.
“The culmination of an offensive does not mean that all tactical activity will cease, and such activity could even increase in intensity—but the activity is unlikely to produce meaningful results.”
Donetsk Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said Wednesday that more than 60 percent of Bakhmut has been destroyed as a result of hostilities in the region, Ukrainian news outlet Ukrainska Pravda reported.
“The enemy is pushed back to their previous positions, i.e. outside the city limits… our defenders courageously defend Bakhmut and prevent the enemy from advancing,” Kyrylenko said on national television.
“But, unfortunately, the city itself suffers from this, as it is destroyed by more than 60 percent.” The governor added that two civilians were killed in shelling on Wednesday.
Newsweek reached out to Russia’s Foreign Ministry for comment.
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