Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Malyar announced Ukraine’s fresh territorial gains on the Telegram social messaging app on Monday, the Interfax news agency reported.
She said Ukrainian forces had registered “a definite advance” on the southern flank of Bakhmut, according to Britain’s The Guardian newspaper.
Malyar said Ukraine’s troops had seized key heights around Bakhmut and had in the past few days established fire control over “entrances, exits and movement of the enemy around the city,” the Kyiv Post reported.
The deputy defence minister stated on Telegram: “During the process of advancing, our troops took control of key commanding heights around Bakhmut.”
Russian troops ‘trapped’ in Bakhmut’: Ukraine commander
Meanwhile, Oleksandr Syrsky, the commander of the Ground Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, on Monday said that Russian forces in Bakhmut were “trapped” and the city is “now under the fire control of the Defense Forces.”
“Fire control” referred to by Malyar and Syrsky means that all points in Bakhmut are in the range of Ukrainian artillery, according to the Kyiv Post.
Syrsky added that Ukraine’s operations in Bakhmut were “ongoing,” and that the Russian army was attempting to break out of their positions in this direction.”
Ukraine liberates 193 square kilometres of land in summer counteroffensive: deputy defence minister
Malyar said that Ukraine had so far reclaimed 192.6 square kilometres of land from Russia in the summer counteroffensive, including 14 square kilometres over the past week, the Interfax news agency reported.
In the south, “the area of 168.6 square kilometres has been liberated,” including an “10.2-square-kilometer increase over the week,” the deputy defence minister announced.
Meanwhile in eastern Ukraine, “due to the improvement of the operational (tactical) situation, the levelling of the front line reached 24 square kilometres,” including a “4-square-kilometre increase over the week,” Malyar said, as quoted by Interfax.
Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022, launching the largest military campaign in Europe since World War II.
Tuesday is day 503 of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
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Source: PAP, Kyiv Post, Interfax-Ukraine, The Guardian