Ukrainian forces have reportedly blown up a bridge near the eastern town of Bakhmut, suggesting they may be planning to withdraw from the area, giving Russia a major symbolic boost ahead of the war’s one-year anniversary, The Guardian reports. Guardian.

Troops blew up the bridge on Monday, reports a local news site in the Donetsk region. Ukraine has denied plans to leave Bakhmut, despite six months of heavy fighting and reduced supplies.

The Kremlin is reportedly concentrating all its forces to capture Bakhmut by February 24, the anniversary of the invasion.

Ukraine and its Western allies said last week that Russia had already launched a new offensive in an attempt to gain a foothold before new supplies arrive from the West in the spring.

“It is clear that we are in a logistical race,” NATO Director General Jens Stoltenberg said in Brussels on Monday.

A Russian victory in Bakhmut would give the Kremlin a boost after months of setbacks and would be a step forward in the battle for the next two major cities controlled by Ukraine.

Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of Wagner’s group, whose mercenaries have been fighting for months to capture Bakhmut, said, however, that the battle is far from over.

“Bakhmut will not be taken tomorrow, because there is strong resistance, shelling, and the meat grinder is working,” he added, referring to the heavy losses on the battlefield. “We won’t be celebrating any time soon,” he added.

According to him, Ukraine “is becoming more active, attracting new and new reserves”.

White House spokesman John Kirby said Russian forces had made gradual progress in their assault on Bakhmut over the past day or two, but it was not yet clear whether it would fall.

Russian troops were currently occupying the areas north and south of Bakhmut and were trying to defeat Ukrainian forces, directing a steady flow of infantry towards the Ukrainian front line.

“The Russians at Bakhmut are trying to rely more on manpower than on armored vehicles,” said Serhii Sherevaty, spokesman for the Ukrainian forces of the Eastern Command.

He said on the Ukraine telethon on Sunday that the Russians are using small tactical groups to get close to Ukrainian forces and try to engage them in hand-to-hand combat without risking advancing with their heavy equipment in the current weather conditions and Ukraine’s ability to target. it.

The battle for control of Bakhmut began in June and became one of the bloodiest battles of the war, with Russia focusing huge resources on capturing the city.

The military are holding their positions in a network of trenches 1,500 meters from the border with Russia in the Shumsky District of Ukraine, The Guardian reports.

The Battle of Bakhmut, the bloodiest since the beginning of the war

A town of about 70,000 before the Russian offensive began almost a year ago, Bakhmut has been largely destroyed after six months of fighting that caused heavy casualties on both sides.

Neither side reports the number of casualties, but both Ukrainians and Russians call the Battle of Bakhmut the bloodiest in the war.

Even if its strategic importance is contested, the city has become a symbol of the struggle between Moscow and Kyiv for control of the Donetsk industrial district.

On Monday, the Ukrainian presidency acknowledged the “difficult” situation in the town of Paraskoviyvka, only about 10 km from the center of Bakhmut, which is “subject to intense Russian bombing and attacks.”

Denys Pushylin said on Friday that Moscow forces now control three of the four supply routes for Ukrainian troops on the way to Bakhmut.

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