On the Bakhmut direction, the Ukrainian Armed Forces have advanced by 200-400 meters

This was stated by the spokesperson of the Eastern grouping of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Sergiy Cherevatyy, during a telethon broadcast.

He noted that the Russians continue their attempts to fully occupy Bakhmut, as it remains their priority objective. Currently, the enemy seeks to seize the southwestern part of the city, where Ukrainian units are holding their defense.

“At the same time, our units on the flanks are trying to press the enemy and, if possible, counterattack within the framework of our defensive operation. Specifically, over the course of this day, we managed to advance by different distances ranging from 200 to 400 meters”, Cherevatyy said.

Earlier, we reported that Ukrainian defenders hold a portion of the city of Bakhmut. On certain fronts, the Defense Forces have advanced more than 2 km.

It is worth noting that earlier, the leader of the Russian PMC “Wagner”, Yevgeny Prigozhin, released a video claiming that the Russian forces had allegedly fully occupied Ukrainian Bakhmut.

The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense refuted his claims, adding that as of May 20, Ukrainian defenders controlled certain industrial and infrastructure facilities in the area, as well as the private sector.

According to the Institute for the Study of War, it is unlikely that the “Wagner” mercenaries will be able to continue offensive actions on any other front outside of Bakhmut due to exhaustion. In Russia, it is assumed that Prigozhin will send forces to another “critical” sector of the front by the end of the month.

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