The city of Bakhmut has become the center of fighting in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine, and the site of one of the longest and deadliest battles of the war.
When two Ukrainian cities in the Luhansk region of eastern Ukraine fell to Russian forces in successive summers, Bakhmut, a city about 30 miles to the southwest, became the next target of the campaign. of Russia to secure the entire Donbas.
Bakhmut became a supply center for Ukrainian fighters in two Luhansk towns — Sievierodonetsk and Lysychansk — and came under repeated fire from Russian forces, prompting much of Bakhmut’s population of about 70,000 to flee. At the time, however, few expected the city, which was also the site of fierce fighting in 2014, to become the longest-running battle of the war.
Fall 2022
The Russian attack on Bakhmut relied on tactics used in previous wars: deploying artillery firepower and trying to capture neighboring towns and villages before moving on to the city itself.
At the same time, Moscow, which holds vast territory to the east of the city, has cut supply routes to Bakhmut used by Ukrainian forces. Cutting that route would force Ukrainian forces to retreat to avoid encirclement.
In the fall, the two sides fought at close range, and the bombardment of the city intensified.
December 2022
In a national speech, President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine accused Russia of turning Bakhmut into “burnt ruins.” Among Ukrainians, the phrase “keep Bakhmut” became a rallying cry, and the defense of the city became a national symbol of resistance.
January 2023
Russian forces captured the village of Klishchiivka, south of Bakhmut. Ukrainian forces consider it key to Bakhmut’s defense because the village is located on high ground to the east of the roads leading to the city that are important for supplying the forces defending the city.
Ukrainian forces retreated from the town of Soledar, northeast of Bakhmut, allowing Russian forces to tighten their grip near the city. Russia later claimed to have seized several villages near Soledar, further jeopardizing Bakhmut’s supply routes.
February 2023
The situation has grown dire for the Ukrainians, with their main remaining supply route – which one general called their “last gash” – under increasing attack from Russian forces. . A US intelligence assessment from the time, leaked online in April, said that on February 25, Ukrainian forces in the city were “virtually surrounded by the operation.”
Mr. Zelensky told Ukrainians that “the situation is getting worse,” and the Ukrainian military has barred aid workers and other civilians from entering Bakhmut for safety reasons, a decision which was seen as a prelude to a possible retreat.
But Ukraine sent reinforcements, including various elite units, and managed to push Russian forces back enough to allow the supply of soldiers to the city and the evacuation of the wounded.
March 2023
The commander of the ground forces of Ukraine, Col. gen. Oleksandr Syrsky, who visited the soldiers in Bakhmut twice and said that Russia is putting its “most ready units” into the fight.
Wagner’s mercenary forces, who helped lead the Russian assault on the city, controlled most of eastern Bakhmut, leaving the Bakhmutka River, which flows north to south through the center of the city, as a new front line. Yevgeny V. Prigozhin, the founder of the Wagner group, said: “The pincers are closing.”
April 2023
In fierce urban fighting, Ukrainian forces defended a western pocket of the city just 20 blocks wide, steadily shrinking and pounded relentlessly by artillery.
Russia has stepped up its attacks on Bakhmut with artillery and airstrikes, Ukraine said, even as forces in Kyiv battled to retain control of key roads leading west from the city, their last major resupply and evacuation route.
May 2023
Mr. Prigozhin threatened to withdraw his fighters from Bakhmut on May 10 due to a lack of support from the Russian Ministry of Defense, but appeared to back down two days later saying he had been promised more ammunition and weapons needed to continue the fight.
By mid-May, Ukrainian forces were able to recapture some territory north and south of Bakhmut even as Russian forces continued their offensive within the city’s borders.
On May 20, Mr. Prigozhin admitted that the city was completely under Wagner’s control, which was later echoed by Russia’s Defense Ministry. Ukraine’s top military commander admitted that only a small group of troops was still defending Bakhmut.
