The head of the Russian Wagner private military group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, acknowledged on Wednesday that the battle for control of the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut has inflicted significant damage on his forces as well as on the Ukrainian side. In a voice message, Prigozhin stated, "The battle for Bakhmut has essentially destroyed the Ukrainian army, and unfortunately, it has also caused severe damage to the Wagner private military company."
Denis Pushilin, the commander appointed by Russia in the part of the Donetsk region under its control, mentioned that a large portion of the Ukrainian forces was forced to withdraw from the Azom metal plant on the western side of the Bakhmutka River. Pushilin told Russian state television, "The important thing here was the evacuation of the industrial area of the plant itself." He affirmed that this indeed happened and that Russian forces defeated the Ukrainian units, which were left in individual groups.
However, the forces have so far failed to completely encircle the city and force the Ukrainians to withdraw as had seemed probable weeks ago. Meanwhile, British military intelligence announced that the Ukrainians managed to repel the Russians from one of the main supply routes to the city.
