'Russia's Army Cracked'
- 22.05.2023, 12:41
A war correspondent on the fatal consequences for the Russians in Bakhmut.
The Ukrainian Armed Forces continue to defend Bakhmut heroically and repel enemy attacks. The defeat of the Russian army is inevitable, but the occupiers cynically lie about their "victories" in Bakhmut.
The head of the Ukrainian Centre for Military and Legal Studies, Oleksandr Musiyenko, told Channel 24 about this. He added that the Russians stubbornly refuse to admit their failures and defeats.
Russia has cracked and lost its advantage on the flanks near Bakhmut. At the cost of colossal losses, the occupiers were able to advance in the Bakhmut direction.
At present, the Russians do control a significant part of Bakhmut. However, fighting and clashes between Russian and Ukrainian units continue in the vicinity and in the town. Ukrainian forces have had considerable success in the Bakhmut direction - they have taken the initiative on the flanks.
"Bakhmut will be shelled from the flanks and heights and it will be difficult for the enemy to hold this bridgehead," Musiyenko noted.
By advancing on the flanks and establishing fire control, the Armed Forces will be able to take Bakhmut in a semicircle and then into a circle. As a result, Russia will lose logistical support.
"Our troops will be able to do more effectively what the Russians had planned and achieved their goals when they were close to locking the ring around Bakhmut," the head of the Centre for Military and Legal Studies said.
The Russian army will no longer win, because now the occupiers have no tendency, as a result of which they will be able to advance and entrench themselves in Bakhmut.
"In my opinion, the enemy will hold the defence somewhere in the vicinity of the Bakhmutka River and will be forced to retreat because they will not be able to hold their positions. They are already shelling with mortars there, and when the artillery starts working, the enemy won't have a chance to survive," Musiyenko said.
Oleksandr Musiyenko is convinced that the leader of the Wagner PMC will withdraw his mercenaries from Bakhmut, because he has already found a way to do it. Prigozhin has suffered huge losses. He has no one to fight and replenish units with.
"At the same time, Prigozhin is a "conquering hero" for the Russian audience. The victor in this situation was not Wagner or the Russian army. It was Prigozhin who won in terms of his political career," stressed the head of the Centre for Military and Legal Studies.
Russia is now pulling additional forces to Bakhmut. The occupiers will be forced, if they do not want to lose the town immediately, to move reinforcements there swiftly. Bakhmut will start drawing out the few remaining numerous Russian reserves in other directions.
"Bakhmut is a hotspot that has cost strength, effort, money and casualties, but it is certainly not a victory for Russia. It would be a victory for them if they were now somewhere behind Chasiv Yar and advancing towards Kostyantynivka," Musiyenko summed up.