Russia may capture Bakhmut 'in coming days': NATO chief

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
8 Mar 2023 17:51

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky points out that if Bakhmut falls into the hands of Russian forces, more cities will shortly fall afterward.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg speaks during a news conference on the eve of a NATO summit in Brussels, Belgium, on March 23, 2022. (Reuters)

The eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut might fall into Russian hands in a few days, warned NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.

His warning came after Russia's Wagner group said they captured the eastern bank of Bakhmut, prompting EU ministers to discuss plans to improve Ukraine's defense and send ammunition.

During the year-long war in Ukraine, the fighting around Bakhmut has been the longest and most intense so far.

"What we see is that Russia is throwing more troops, more forces, and what Russia lacks in quality they try to make up in quantity," Stoltenberg told reporters in Stockholm.

"We cannot rule out that Bakhmut may eventually fall in the coming days," the head of the US-led military alliance said, adding that "this does not necessarily reflect any turning point of the war."

On his part, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky highlighted the possible scenarios in the event that Russian forces capture Bakhmut during an interview for CNN, warning that Russian forces could go further.

"They could go to Kramatorsk, they could go to Sloviansk, it would be an open road for the Russians after Bakhmut to other towns in Ukraine, in the Donetsk direction."

Zelensky also told CNN on Wednesday that his forces are to stay in Bakhmut.

"Of course, we have to think about the lives of our military. But we have to do whatever we can whilst we're getting weapons, and supplies and our army is getting ready for the counter-offensive."

EU defense ministers met in Stockholm and discussed a plan to send billion of euros worth of weaponry to Ukraine as Kiev is suffering from a serious shortage of 155-millimeter howitzer shells since it fires thousands on a daily basis.

Stoltenberg stated that the current consumption rate compared to the production of weaponry is not sustainable, driving focus to the importance of ramping up the production.