Posted on 05/18/2023 7:44:51 AM PDT by marcusmaximus
The Ukrainian military and Russia's Wagner private army both reported further Russian retreats on the outskirts of Bakhmut on Thursday, as Kyiv pressed on with its biggest advance for six months ahead of a planned counteroffensive.
Ukrainian troops near the front line said Russia was bombarding access roads to slow the Ukrainian assault, which has shifted momentum after months of slow Russian gains in Europe's deadliest ground combat since World War Two.
"Now, for the most part, as we have started to advance, they are shelling all the routes to front positions, so our armoured vehicles can't deliver more infantry, ammunition and other things," said Petro Podaru, commander of a Ukrainian artillery unit.
Ukraine's military, which has been cautious so far in reporting gains in the area, said troops had advanced in places by more than a mile. Its forces had been on the defensive for half a year, weathering a huge winter and spring offensive by Moscow that saw only slow gains.
-snip-
Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin says his forces inside Bakhmut itself are still advancing, on the cusp of pushing Ukrainian troops out of their last foothold in the built-up area on the city's Western outskirts.
But he accuses commanders of Russia's regular forces of abandoning vital ground on the flanks north and south of the city, raising the risk of troops inside being encircled.
(Excerpt) Read more at usnews.com ...
What Soviets? You mean like the Nazi’s in Ukraine?
More than Ukraine scientists. If they have any that aren’t dead yet.
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