Ukraine war: Russia’s claimed Bakhmut win is anything but, Western experts say
- Russia claims it has won control of Bakhmut, the scene of some of the bloodiest fighting of the Ukraine war
- Western observers say the Ukrainian side wants to exhaust the Russian military before an anticipated counteroffensive
Whether Bakhmut has fallen or not, Moscow is being pulled deeper into an ever more costly fight for the frontline city as Kyiv readies a major offensive, experts said.
Russia’s claim to have conquered the destroyed city, which Ukraine rejected on Sunday, does not mean significant new terrain from which to launch attacks nor harden defences.
But Moscow has made the eastern city’s capture a key aim and has fought the war’s longest battle, as well as one of its deadliest, to try to win what it would like to bill as a significant success.
US President Joe Biden, speaking from the G7 summit in Japan, noted Russian casualties in Bakhmut alone numbered over 100,000, including both dead and injured.
Rattled by the possibility of not winning Bakhmut after Ukraine this month retook kilometres of ground to the north and south of the city, Russia brought in significant numbers of additional troops.
“The redeployment represents a notable commitment,” the UK Ministry of Defence said on Saturday, noting the reinforcements could number in the thousands.