On the outskirts of this city of Donbass, which the Russian forces have been trying to conquer for more than four months, the command center of the 58th Ukrainian brigade coordinates its operations thanks to air intelligence.
by Thomas d’Istria (Bakhmut region (Ukraine), Special Envoy)
The crews of two SAU -122 shoes – which, by far, resemble tanks – exchange jokes in the freezing cold of a position located on the edge of a tiny forest. The faces are tired. To give themselves courage, they are preparing for coffee by heating it with a blowtorch. Deflagrations resonate in the gray sky. The soldiers who do not stand on the tanks have their feet taken in a thick mud. The city of Bakhmout, which Russian forces have been trying to conquer continuous artillery dams for more than four months, is about ten kilometers.
Oleksandr Lapa, a green cap descended just above the eyes, makes sure not to go too far from a antenna of the Internet Starlink connection system. The 24 -year -old awaits the orders of command of the 58
On images taken by a Ukrainian drone flying over the positions of the Russian infantry, Oleksandr Lapa saw men flee in all directions to avoid a bombardment. “I don’t know if they had taken drugs but they were running everywhere,” he said soberly. There, an explosion, three dead, then another explosion, still three dead. And the guys continued to run … “another once, they are Ukrainian soldiers who, after reaching an enemy position, were able to recover a military radio. For several days, kyiv’s forces listened to the orders of a Russian commander. “He shouted and gave the soldiers thirty minutes to capture a position by threatening them to kill them himself if they did not take her,” said Oleksandr Lapa with a detached air.
In the Bakhmout sector, the Russian forces, composed of the regular army, new mobilized and mercenaries of the private militia Wagner, have been on the offensive for several months. The conquest of this city ravaged by the bombings would allow them to progress with their objective of seizing the entire Donbass region, annexed in part by Russia in September, and to obtain a long -hoped victory after the last Military reverse on the front lines, especially in the south of Ukraine.
violent fights
In this sector, the forces of Moscow, in numerical superiority, slowly nibble on the ground, while the Ukrainian artillerymen lack ammunition. The fighting is terribly violent and heavy in human losses, on one side as on the other. Despite fatigue, after nine months of war, kyiv’s troops are resistant as best they can with enemy compressor roller.
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