The soldiers of the private military company Wagner have crossed the Bakhmutka River and are fighting a “serious battle” in the market area on the right bank of Bakhmut (Russian name – Artemovsk), the TV channel reported. RT.
“Probably, advanced groups of the Wagner PMC were able to cross the Bakhmutka River and began to move towards the city centre,” the report says.
According to RT, between the bus station, the market and the school building No. 5, there is a company fortress of the Ukrainian army with a system of passage under the houses and an ammunition depot.
From this point, underground tunnels lead to the central part of the city, according to the TV channel. Along these, you can reach the alley between the lower and upper parks, the Avangard stadium, as well as the pre-trial detention center and the machine building facility.
One of the PMC fighters told the state agency RIA Novosti that in the southern neighborhoods of Bakhmut almost every house was raided, with several Ukrainian soldiers in each.
“There were enemy firing points here. Strips of the 7.62-mm NATO sample (caliber) from the MG-42 machine gun, ”he told reporters, showing samples of weapons captured at the positions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
On March 10, military correspondent Alexander Simonov said that from the north, Wagner PMC units entered the territory of the Artemovsky Metalworking Plant (AZOM) and began to go deeper into the enterprise.
“AZOM is a huge region with intense industrial development and an underground communications network that goes underground for dozens of floors.”
The eastern part of the city is under the control of the PMCs
British military intelligence spoke about the situation in Bakhmut in its daily report on hostilities in Ukraine on 11 March.
“Over the past four days, Wagner PMC’s forces have taken control of most of Bakhmut’s eastern neighborhoods. The UK Ministry of Defense said the front line now runs along the Bakhmutka River in the city centre.
According to the ministry, the Ukrainian army holds the western part of Bakhmut. According to intelligence, the UAF destroyed important bridges across the river flowing from north to south along a 200 to 800 meter wide strip of open land between residential areas.
“As the Armed Forces were able to fire from fortified buildings in the west, this area has become a kill zone and this is likely to create serious difficulties for PMC Wagner forces to try to continue their westward offensive,” the British military department said.
Intelligence states that the Ukrainian army and its western supply lines remain vulnerable to attacks by the Russian Armed Forces.
Evgeny Prigozhin, Chairman of Wagner PMC did not rule outThat the Armed Forces of Ukraine can prepare a counterattack in the Bakhmut region.
“Yes, it is a known fact that the enemy is preparing for a counterattack. Of course, we are doing everything possible to prevent this from happening, ”said Prigozhin.
On March 8, he reported that Russian forces were in control of the eastern part of the city.
Ukrainian counteroffensive
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed in a video message on March 10 that the country’s armed forces are preparing a counterattack near Bakhmut. He said he had discussed with the command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine an attempt to organize a counterattack and strengthen the army’s positions in the city area.
“The meeting of the Commander-in-Chief has ended. The commander-in-chief, the commanders of the operational groups, reported on the situation on the front line, mainly on defense. East and south, border. Bakhmut and our opportunities to gain a foothold there,” Zelensky said.
On March 8, Zelensky said in an interview with CNN that the city “should not be surrounded”.
“Of course we have to think about the life of our army. But we must do everything we can while we get weapons, supplies and our army prepares for a counterattack,” he said.
He also warned that if Russian forces took control of Bakhmut, they would have an “open road” to take key cities in the Donetsk direction.
“They could go to Kramatorsk, they could go to Slavyansk, it would be a clear path for the Russians to other Ukrainian cities after Bakhmut in the direction of Donetsk. That’s why our men are standing there.”
In turn, Alexander Syrsky, commander of the ground forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, said that holding Bakhmut made it possible to prepare for the upcoming counterattack.
“Every day the city is defended allows us to buy time to prepare the reserves and prepare for the upcoming offensive operations,” he said.
In the past two weeks, Syrsky has visited Bakhmut four times, according to Ukrainian media reports.
The city is located north of Gorlovka and is an important transport hub for supplying the Ukrainian contingent in Donbass. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu had previously stated that taking control of this place would allow an offensive deep into the defenses of Ukrainian troops.