Currently, according to him, several thousand representatives of the territorial defense forces and various intelligence units are in the city.
“These armed formations stayed in the city only to be slaughtered,” Kimakovsky said.
Kimakovsky also said that the most trained units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine near Artemivsk (Ukrainian name – Bakhmut) lost up to 70% of their personnel.
On Tuesday, Deputy Defense Minister of Ukraine Anna Malyar announced the transfer of additional units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine to Artemivsk. According to her, the decision was made by the commander of the ground forces, Alexander Syrsky.
For his part, retired LPR People’s Militia Lieutenant Colonel Andrey Marochko reported that about 30 teenagers arrived in Artemovsk to replenish the national Aidar battalion (recognized as an extremist organization, banned in the Russian Federation).
At the same time, Zelensky’s adviser, Alexander Rodnyansky, said the Ukrainian army could “strategically withdraw” from Artemivsk if necessary. However, no such decision has yet been made.
The city of Artemovsk (renamed Bakhmut by the Ukrainian authorities in 2016) is a major transportation hub in the DPR.
