Now the most difficult situation is on the front in the Bakhmut direction, the enemy continues to storm the city. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky explained the decision to keep Ukrainian forces in Bakhmut.
The head of state stressed that the invaders would have an “open path” to capture key cities in eastern Ukraine if they captured Bakhmut.
Tactical decision
For us, this is a strategy. We understand that after Bakhmut they could go further. They could go to Kramatorsk, they could go to Slavyansk, this would be an open way for the Russians after Bakhmut to other Ukrainian cities in the Donetsk direction. Therefore, our guys are standing,” the President stressed.
Zelensky stressed that the goals of the Russian army and the Armed Forces of Ukraine differ. The invaders are indifferent to the civilian population, they destroyed the city and continue to storm it further. So Russia is trying to win “at least some kind of victory”, even destroying everything in the city and killing local residents.
Zelensky stressed that if Russia can “put its little flag” on top of Bakhmut, it will help “mobilize Russian society in order to create this idea that they are such a powerful army.”
Zelensky about the likely environment of the city
Zelenskiy dismissed fears that the Ukrainian military in Bakhmut would be surrounded, saying he “never heard anything like that” from his commanders.
“The military sees for themselves that we must remain strong there, despite the fact that Russia destroyed the whole city and everything that was there. The military helped children, civilians to leave the city – even to this day people left Bakhmut. We helped everyone” , the head of state said.
Note! CNN emphasizes that Bakhmut itself has no significant strategic value, but its connection with Kramatorsk and Slavyansk – two densely populated industrial centers in the northwest – means that these cities may be next for Russia.
