Situation 'Extremely Tense' Says Commander As Russia Steps Up Bid To Encircle Ukraine's Bakhmut

The commander of the Ukrainian forces has said the situation is extremely tense in the city of Bakhmut as Russians have stepped up the assault.

The commander of the Ukrainian forces has said the situation is extremely tense in the city of Bakhmut as Russians have stepped up the assault.

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As the Russians stepped up assault to encircle the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, a commander of the Ukrainian forces said that the situation is extremely tense as the conflict entered year two.

As reported by Reuters, Russia is trying to cut the Ukrainian defenders' supply lines to the city which has seen some of the war's toughest fighting and force them to surrender or withdraw. The siege of Bakhmut is crucial to Moscow as it would give them the first major victory in more than half a year and pave the way to capture the last remaining urban centres in the Donetsk region.

"Despite significant losses, the enemy threw in the most prepared assault units of Wagner, who are trying to break through the defences of our troops and surround the city," said Ukraine's Colonel general Oleksandr Syrskyi as quoted by Reuters.

Ukraine President Zelensky also said that the situation in Bakhmut was getting "more and more difficult".

The enemy is constantly destroying everything that can be used to protect our positions," Zelensky said as quoted by BBC.

Earlier, the Ukrainian military had said Russia had strengthened its forces in the Bakhmut area and was shelling settlements around the city.

"Over the past day, our soldiers repelled more than 60 enemy attacks," the military said early on Tuesday referring to Bakhmut and nearby eastern areas, adding that Ukrainian forces stopped Russian attacks on the villages of Yadhidne and Berkhivka, on the northern approaches to Bakhmut.

Ukrainian military analyst Oleh Zhdanov said Russian forces had driven a wedge between those villages as they tried to cut the road west to Chasiv Yar, Reuters reported.

"The southern part of Bakhmut is the only area which can be described as under Ukrainian control. In all other districts, the situation is unpredictable," he said as quoted by the agency. "It is impossible to say where the front line lies," he added.

One year on, thousands of Ukrainian civilians are dead, countless buildings have been reduced to rubble, and tens of thousands of troops on both sides have been killed or seriously wounded. Beyond Ukraine’s borders, the invasion shattered European security, reshaped international relations, and frayed a tightly woven global economy.

The conflict has not only put the stability of Europe in danger, but it also impacted global food and energy security, including in the Middle East and Africa, causing shockwaves in a world still reeling from the Covid pandemic.