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War between Ukraine and RussiafileRussia sends many Wagner mercenaries hoping to conquer this Ukrainian city. A cannon fodder strategy that could eventually bear fruit, with colossal human casualties and destruction.
Winter and the delivery or non-delivery of heavy tanks by Kiev’s allies do not change anything, the fighting in Ukraine continues. They are concentrated on a line running northeast-south, from the Luhansk region to those of Zaporizhia, where the front has been revived after months of freezing, and Kherson, through Donetsk province, where they are most relentless.
Bakhmout, a pre-war town of 70,000, will soon be gone. Russian forces, mainly Wagner’s mercenaries, have been attacking it day in and day out for more than five months. Strategic interest remains questionable, even if the nearby town of Soledar is riddled with salt and gypsum mines, as Ukrainian forces have built up strong defenses should they lose and retreat.
But the Russian paramilitaries, including former pardoned prisoners sent under Ukrainian fire with no prospect of return, are not giving up their attacks. These are artillery, drone, and automatic weapon combat as the front closes. In the past few days, according to the American research center Institute of Study of War, they have concentrated on Bakhmout, but also on the north-east of the city, in Verkhnokamianske, Bilohorivka and Rozdolivka