- Russia’s seizure of the city was first announced Saturday by Wagner Group’s founder, Yevgeny Prigozhin, who waved a Russian flag amongst the ruins
President Vladimir Putin has congratulated his troops and the mercenary Wagner Group for taking the largely levelled eastern city.
And Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has also confirmed Russia has taken control of the key city of Bakhmut.
Bakhmut, a salt-mining town that once had a population of 70,000 people, has been the scene of the longest and bloodiest battle in Russia’s 15-month war in Ukraine.
The fall of Bakhmut, where both Russia and Ukraine are believed to have suffered huge losses, would represent Moscow’s first big victory in the conflict in more than 10 months.
“As a result of offensive actions of the Wagner assault units, with the support of artillery and aviation of the ‘Southern’ unit, the liberation of the city of Artemovsk was completed,” Russia’s defence ministry said in a statement, using the Soviet-era name of Bakhmut.
“Vladimir Putin congratulated the assault units of Wagner as well as all servicemen of units of the Russian armed forces who provided them with the necessary support and flank cover, on the completion of the operation to liberate” the city, the TASS state news agency quoted a Kremlin statement as saying.
The Russian president said those who had distinguished themselves would be given awards, the news agency added.
Ukraine had been holding strong – but faced constant human waves of Wagner Group fighters and Russian conscripts in what was branded a “meat grinder”.
The seizure of the city was first announced yesterday by Putin’s mercenary warlord Yevgeny Prigozhin, who waved a Russian flag amongst the ruins.
And while his claim was initially met with scepticism, Zelensky confirmed the city’s fall as he attended the G7.
Bakhmut had been seen a symbol of Ukrainian defiance – and its fall will be a blow to Kyiv.
But with more Western weapons on the way, analysts remain confident Ukraine can mount a successful counter offensive in the coming weeks and months.
Zelensky was asked about Bakhmut as he attended a meeting with US President Joe Biden in Japan after he jetted in yesterday to attend the key summit.
When asked if it remained in Kyiv’s control, the president said: “I think no. For today, Bakhmut is only in our hearts. It is tragedy. There is nothing on this place.”
Zelensky pointed out Russia and the Wagner group had “destroyed everything” as they attempted to take control of Bakhmut.
Wagner warlord Prigozhin trumpeted his victory yesterday as he posted a video with his cronies from Bakhmut.
Ukraine initially denied he had seized control – both later admitting the situation with “critical”.
Prigozhin looked pleased with himself as he stood in the desolate ruins of a city reduced to rubble.
“We completely took the whole city, from house to house,” he crowed.
The Wagner Group are a private army often seen as Putin’s private mercenary force – but have in recent months appear to have been at odds with Moscow.
Prigozhin – known as “Putin’s Chef” for his former job as a catering boss – is believed to have ambitions to one day take over in the Kremlin.
Putin however was also keen to take credit for the victory – praising his troops as Russia celebrated the capture of Bakhmut.
Russia’ seizure of the city is believed to have come at incredible cost – with some estimates reporting up to 80,000 casualties and some 20,000 dead on their side.
Nato believes the Ukrainians held strong with a ratio of five-to-one as they fought back against the invaders.
It is another pyrrhic victory for Putin – who is believed to have lost up to 200,000 soldiers.
Prigozhin said his forces would withdraw from Bakhmut from May 25 for rest and retraining, handing over control to the regular Russian army.
Distant explosions could be heard in the background as Prigozhin spoke during the video.
In the video, the Wagner chief taunted Zelensky and Biden, who were together taking part in a G7 summit in Japan where the Ukraine war was front of mind for world leaders.
Addressing Zelensky, Prigozhin said: “Today when you see Biden, kiss him on the top of his head, say hi to him from me.”
And earlier this month, Prigozhin had threatened to pull his troops out after a furious tirade against Putin, branding him an “a***hole” over his failure to deliver adequate ammunitions.
The warlord has himself acknowledged in the past that the small city had no strategic significance.
But it took on huge symbolic importance for both sides because of the sheer intensity of the fighting and the scale of losses.
The Sun’s Jerome Starkey has been reporting from a secret underground bunker this week on the battlefield.
He called it a “World War 1-style hellscape of craters, barbed wire and battlefield trenches”.
He described how Ukraine’s 3rd Assault Brigade used tanks and infantry to advance 1,000 yards across farmland south of the city in the last few days as panic spread through Russian lines.
General Syrskyi, said the attack “stalled the entire Russian army”.
The fall of Bakhmut comes as Ukraine is poised to get F-16 fighter jets as the US finally agreed to hand them over – a move that could be key as the brutal 15-month war continues.
Russia’s invasion was claimed by Putin to simply be a “special military operation” which would only last two weeks.
Now tens of thousands of Russians – up to 200,000 – are lying dead in the fields across Ukraine.
And millions of Ukrainian civilians have endured untold misery as the cities have been devastated and their homes stolen.
Putin foolishly believed his forces would be welcomed into Ukraine as liberators.
But instead, the initial attack ended in a disaster which saw his forces devastated and thrown back to Russia.
Kyiv also continues to call for Western arms which they believe they need to defeat the Russians.
The world is awaiting to see what Ukraine will achieve in their upcoming counter-offensive – with hopes it could provide key gains across the frontline.