Ruins in Bakhmut on May 21 after months of fierce fighting in the eastern Ukrainian city
TASS news agency on May 22 quoted Mr. Denis Pushilin, a pro-Russian official leading the Moscow-backed "Donetsk People's Republic" (DPR), saying that a preliminary operation to clear mines had begun in the city of Bakhmut.
"Carrying out mine clearance carefully and thoroughly is very important to us. Given the scale of the combat operations taking place there, it is a very difficult and strenuous job," he said.
Quick view: What hot developments happened in the Russian military campaign in Ukraine on day 452?
The Russian Defense Ministry said on May 21 that its forces had taken full control of Bakhmut, thanks to units of the Wagner Private Military Company, backed by Russian artillery and aircraft units.
Meanwhile, The Guardian reported on May 22 that Ukrainian armed forces said fighting continued in Bakhmut, after Ukrainian officials denied information that Russia had taken complete control of the city.
The Ukrainian military added that over the past day, Russian forces "unsuccessfully attempted to regain lost positions south of the nearby settlement of Ivanivske."
Reuters quoted Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar on May 22 as saying that the country's forces were still advancing on the flanks of the city of Bakhmut, although their mobility had decreased and Russia had sent in more forces.
Ms. Maliar reiterated that Ukraine still has a small foothold inside the city.
President Zelensky: "Bakhmut is still in my heart"
According to the assessment of the Institute for the Study of War (ISW-USA), the Wagner mercenary force seems to have affected its capacity for future military actions, after gaining control of the administrative boundary west of Bakhmut.
“Russian forces will likely need additional reinforcements to hold Bakhmut and its flanks, at the expense of operational influence in other directions,” according to ISW.
Can DPR deal with long-range missiles?
According to Mr. Pushilin, the DPR's air defense capabilities can adapt quickly, especially to long-range missile attacks from Ukraine.
“Our air defense forces can change parameters quite quickly, find ways to counter Ukrainian shelling,” he told Rossiya-24 TV when asked about the difficulty of intercepting long-range missiles and the DPR’s readiness.
Will British missiles replace US HIMARS in importance in the Ukrainian military?
Earlier on May 20, a DPR official said that Ukrainian forces had launched an attack on the city of Mariupol, apparently using long-range Storm Shadow missiles supplied by the UK.
Both sides continue to suffer losses.
According to the Kyiv Independent news site on May 22, the General Staff of the Ukrainian army said that the country's artillery attacked 5 concentration areas of Russian soldiers, 2 ammunition depots, and 3 artillery units at the firing point.
In addition, the Russian side was also attacked at two control points, an electronic warfare system, an air defense missile system and "another important target".
The Ukrainian Air Force conducted 14 attacks on concentrations of Russian troops and equipment, and seven attacks on Russian air defense missile systems.
Is Ukraine exaggerating its air defense power?
Ukraine also said that in the previous 24 hours, Russia launched 6 missiles, conducted 52 airstrikes and fired 65 artillery shells at Ukraine.
On the Russian side, TASS reported that Russian forces destroyed two Ukrainian ammunition depots near the Andreyevka area in Donetsk.
Vadim Astafyev, spokesman for the Russian forces' Southern Operational Group, said that strikes by a missile unit of the group destroyed ammunition depots of the 24th and 54th mechanized brigades of the Ukrainian side.
Russian artillery also struck the temporary deployment site of a battalion of the Ukrainian army's Right Sector group near the Novgorodskoye settlement, he added.
Russia and Ukraine have not commented on each other's information.
Russia: F-16 fighter jets arrive in Ukraine, raising questions about NATO involvement
Why did the Brazilian President not meet the Ukrainian President?
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said on May 22 that his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky did not appear at a scheduled bilateral meeting during the G7 summit in Hiroshima, Japan.
"I had a scheduled bilateral meeting with Mr. Zelensky here, in this room at 3:15 p.m. We were waiting and received information that he was late," Reuters quoted the Brazilian leader as saying.
President Zelensky tried to meet with President Lula privately. However, the two leaders said they were unable to meet due to their schedules. At a press conference in Japan before returning home, the Brazilian leader said he had wanted to meet to discuss the Ukraine issue.
According to President Lula, his team scheduled him to meet President Zelensky on the afternoon of May 21, but the Ukrainian leader arrived late, and his schedule was full later.
China summons Japanese ambassador over G7 statement, what does Tokyo say?
Mr Zelensky later told reporters that "everyone has their own schedule, so we could not meet with the Brazilian president".
Source link
Comment (0)