Ukraine says it has broken through Russian defense line near Bakhmut | War in Ukraine

Ukraine claimed on Monday to have broken the Russian defense line by retaking two villages near the devastated town of Bakhmut on the Eastern Front, claiming to have captured seven square kilometers in this area over the past week.

Engaged since early June in a difficult counteroffensive against Russian fortified lines, Ukrainian forces have increased their pressure in the past two weeks, retaking the village of Robotyne in the south and then Andriïvka in the east.

On Sunday, Andriïvka’s neighboring town, Klichtchiïvka, fell after months of fighting.

With these advances, The enemy’s defense line has been breached.said the commander of kyiv’s ground troops, General Oleksandr Syrsky.

These locations were important for the Russian defense line around Bakhmut, he added, specifying that three Russian brigades had been destroyed.

The situation in the area continues complicated and Fierce fighting continues near BakhmutHowever, General Syrsky admitted.

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Russia claimed the capture of Bakhmut in May after ten months of bloody fighting. But it has since faced Ukrainian counterattacks on its flanks, and the battle continues for this city that had 70,000 inhabitants before the war and is largely destroyed today.

According to Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Ganna Maliar, kyiv soldiers seized 2 km² during the past week near Bakhmout and more than 5 km² in the south, where their efforts are now directed towards the town of Verbove.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said on X (ex-Twitter) iron of each of our heroes on the front line.

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The reconquered towns, which before the war only had a few hundred inhabitants, were destroyed during the fighting.

Strikes on Ukrainian territory beyond the front also continued with Russia sending 24 drones and launching 17 missiles for new night strikes, the Ukrainian Air Force said.

Eighteen drones were shot down as well as the 17 cruise missiles, he assured.

russian bombings

The Russian military, for its part, claimed in its daily report to have bombed storage sites in Ukraine for Storm Shadow cruise missiles and depleted uranium munitions, two types of weapons supplied by London.

The objective of the strike was achieved. All facilities were affected.

Russia also announced that it had shot down several Ukrainian drones overnight in annexed Crimea in the Moscow region, as well as in Belgorod and Voronezh, near Ukraine. A type of attack that has become almost everyday.

In Russia itself, security services said they had arrested two members of a pro-Ukrainian armed group in a region bordering Ukraine who They were preparing acts of sabotageat the time that They were preparing to set fire to an administrative building.

This group, the Legion Freedom of RussiaIt was the origin of several armed incursions in regions bordering Ukraine.

With their counteroffensive, Ukrainian troops are striving, both in the east and in the south, to cut the logistical lines of the Russian army. However, their advance was slow, facing minefields, trenches and anti-tank traps.

Zelensky in the White House

The US Chief of Staff, Mark Milley, estimated on Sunday that this operation had not it did not failcontrary to what President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly assured, but that a very long conflict was to be expected.

On the diplomatic level, Volodymyr Zelensky will be received on Thursday at the White House for new talks with his American counterpart Joe Biden, whose country is Kiev’s main military and financial support.

On the other hand, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is expected to be in Russia from Monday to Thursday to hold talks dedicated to the security.

This Chinese visit to Russia follows that of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un last week.

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Kim’s trip to the Russian Far East, which ended on Sunday, did not result in whitout dealthe Kremlin said, but revealed possible military ties between the two countries.

The trip has revived Western fears that Pyongyang is supplying Moscow with weapons and ammunition for its war in Ukraine.