Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has made a surprise visit to the front-line city of Bakhmut, where Ukrainian and Russian forces have been engaged in a fierce, months-long conflict.
According to the presidency, he visited with troops and awarded servicemen.
Bakhmut has been a primary target for Russian forces in the eastern Donetsk region for months, and it has sustained severe damage.
Nonetheless, Ukrainian soldiers were able to halt the advance.
The visit is a remarkable statement of defiance and support for Ukrainian forces involved in some of the bloodiest fightings of recent weeks.
His journey will be compared to recent public visits by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who on Monday visited Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko, a longtime ally, for the first time in more than three years.
The two leaders spoke about expanding military cooperation amidst mounting rumors of a potential Belarusian invasion of Ukraine. Several Russian forces invaded Ukraine from the north through Belarus in February of last year.
However, a senior US state department official told that the Russian leadership was divided on whether or not to mount a winter offensive.
In addition, he stated that the United States was experiencing “extremely substantial” shortages of ammunition for Russian forces and that the individuals “thrown into the war” lacked cohesive training, limiting their efficacy.
All of this “limits” what the Russians may desire to do, he noted.
Mr. Putin, upon his return to Moscow on Tuesday, encouraged the security services to be more vigilant in exposing “traitors, spies, and saboteurs.”
He instructed them to safeguard the “safety” of residents in the illegally acquired Ukrainian territory by Russia in September, saying that the situation in those regions was “very challenging.”
“Internal light”
Mr. Zelensky wished his troops well in a video clip broadcast on the Telegram channel Freedom TV.
“I believe that the heroes of Bakhmut should have the same opportunities as everyone else, that their children and families are comfortable and healthy,” he stated.
“I would like to wish them brightness, but the situation is so complex that there is light and then there isn’t light. “The most important thing is to have inner light.”
He stated that the Russians had already lost 99 thousand of soldiers in the conflict. However, this number cannot be independently verified, as neither Russia nor Ukraine has disclosed their total number of casualties.
Mr. Zelensky continued, “Since May, the occupiers have attempted to shatter our Bakhmut, but as time passes, Bakhmut is breaking not just the Russian army, but also the Russian mercenaries who arrive to replace the occupiers’ depleted force.”
He was alluding to the shadowy Wagner mercenary organization, which has been engaged in combat near Bakhmut.
According to presidential spokesman Serhiy Nikiforov, Mr. Zelensky left the city before the announcement of his visit.
The president has visited other recently liberated cities, including Kherson and Izyum, in the past.
The capture of Bakhmut has been a major objective of the Russian effort for months, and Moscow has devoted substantial resources to this end.
It might pave the road to Sloviansk and Kramatorsk, the two most significant cities currently under Ukrainian control in the Donbas region.
Nevertheless, as Ukraine strengthens its defenses in the surrounding region, it is believed that any Russian victory at this time would be merely symbolic.
Both sides have suffered high casualties, prompting Russian and Ukrainian leaders to refer to the conflict as a “meat grinder.” Before the conflict, there were approximately 70,000 residents in the city, but now there are only a few.
Today marks 300 days since Russia invaded Ukraine. Vice-Minister of Defense Hanna Malyar, who also visited Bakhmut, remarked on Facebook, “What are 300 days in our more than a 300-year struggle for freedom from Russia!
“We’re standing. We’re in a fight. We’ll be victorious!”
