‘Is Putin winning?’ asks the cover of this week’s Spectator. Until recently the overall narrative around the war focused on how much land Ukraine was liberating from Russian occupation – but the Kremlin’s strategy of throwing soldiers into the meat-grinder is paying off, with significant progress on their way to the encirclement of the city of Bakhmut.
For over six months Bakhmut has been the hottest spot on the Donbas front, with Ukrainian soldiers holding steady against the Russian regular army and Wagner Group mercenaries. But the loss of the salt town of Soledar in January and overwhelming Russian artillery and man density has allowed Russian forces to cut off two of Ukraine’s three main supply routes to Bakhmut. Now, they hold the last major road under fire control. There is every risk of Ukrainian soldiers in the city being cut off. The below map shows the state of play.
Western allies have been telling Ukraine to retreat from the city, saying it’s as good as lost and no longer worth the fight.
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