Ukraine’s Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar said on May 23 that Kyiv's forces had made some progress "on the flanks to the north and south of Bakhmut." But she acknowledged that Russian forces had taken the control of the city itself and continued to "clear areas" they held.
Ukrainian Forces Still Fighting For Bakhmut Despite Moscow's Claim Of Victory
A Ukrainian soldier engages Moscow's forces from his trench position near Bakhmut in the Donetsk region on May 22. Fighting for control of the city has continued despite claims by Russia that it has fallen to the Kremlin's troops.
A Ukrainian soldier fires a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) toward Russian positions. On May 23, Ukraine's Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar said on the Telegram messaging app that Ukrainian forces still controlled the southwestern edge of Bakhmut.
A Ukrainian soldier sits in a trench at the front line near Bakhmut on May 22. Two days earlier, the chief of Russia's Wagner mercenary group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, claimed his troops had taken control of the city.
Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar wrote that Kyiv's troops "control the southwestern outskirts of the city in the 'Litak' district." She said Kyiv's forces had made some progress "on the flanks to the north and south of Bakhmut" but gave no details. RFE/RL is unable to verify the battlefield reports.
The brutal fighting for Bakhmut -- a city that held around 70,000 people before the Russian invasion -- has resulted in heavy casualties on both sides.
A Ukrainian soldier near the front line in Bakhmut. The 15 months of trench warfare have been described as a "meat grinder" by Prigozhin. Though military experts say the city has little strategic value, it has taken on great symbolic importance for both Kyiv and Moscow.
The Ukrainian military said on May 23 that its forces repelled 30 Russian assaults over the past day in the city as the fighting decreased in Bakhmut but shelling continued in the area around it.
Ukrainian forces said they have continued to repel attacks along the whole Bakhmut-Avdiyivka-Maryinka front line in the Donetsk region.
A Ukrainian soldier fires an RPG toward enemy positions from his trench.
Moscow says capturing Bakhmut opens the way to further advances in the eastern industrial Donbas region bordering Russia. Kyiv says its advance on the Russian forces' flanks is more meaningful than its withdrawal inside Bakhmut itself, and Russia will have to weaken its lines elsewhere to send reinforcements to hold the shattered city.