Russia's Defense Ministry denies claims that Ukrainian forces have breached parts of the front line around the town of Bahmut
In an unusual post late at night on its Telegram channel, the Russian Ministry of Defense rejected claims that Ukrainian forces had breached parts of the front line around the eastern city of Bahmut, reports Hotnews.ro.
"Claims spread by individual Telegram channels about 'defense penetrations' in various sections of the contact line are not true," the Russian ministry said in a statement.
The clarifications come after at least two Russian military bloggers reported a deteriorating situation for Russian forces around the city in eastern Ukraine, where a battle of attrition has been raging for months. For his part, Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the Russian Wagner mercenaries, had reported on a withdrawal of Russian forces and a Ukrainian territorial advance on the flanks of Bahmut.
The Russian Defense Ministry claims that Russian assault units are making progress in the western part of Bahmut, with air and artillery support. It said troops were fighting to push Ukrainian soldiers "in the direction of Maloilinovka" - apparently a reference to a village in the Bahmut area.
The report of the General Staff of the Ukrainian army described a "dynamic" situation in Bahmut on Thursday, claiming that Kiev's forces are putting pressure on Russian fighters and probing the weak points of their lines.
Kiev also reported "effective counter-attacks" around the city in the east of the country, despite constant Russian shelling.
