Ukrainian forces seize initiative, launch broad front offensive near Bakhmut

Defenders of the Armed Forces of Ukraine seized the strategic initiative on the Bakhmut front. 

The spokesman of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Andrii Kovaliov, said on the air of the telethon that Ukrainian troops are conducting an offensive with a broad front, Rubryka reports.

The Defense Forces of Ukraine continue the offensive operation in the Bakhmut, Melitopol, and Berdiansk areas in Ukraine's east and southeast.

In the direction of Rivnopil-Volodyne, on the border of the Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia regions, the Armed Forces of Ukraine had partial success and are entrenched at the achieved boundaries.

"They are inflicting artillery fire on identified enemy targets. Counterbattery measures are being taken," Kovaliov said. "The Russian occupying forces are putting up fierce resistance. At the same time, the enemy is reporting significant losses in personnel and equipment."

Fierce battles are also ongoing in the Bakhmut direction. According to the spokesperson, Ukrainian soldiers seized a strategic initiative on the indicated part of the front.

"In the direction of Bakhmut, Ukrainian soldiers seized the strategic initiative and are conducting offensive actions with a broad front," he emphasized. "On the flanks of the city of Bakhmut, they continue to put pressure on the enemy, break out of previously captured lines, have success, and gain a foothold on the lines they have reached."

Крім того, українські захисники продовжують стримувати наступ російських військ на Лиманському, Авдіївському та Мар'їнському напрямках.

Довідка

Over the past month, Ukrainian defenders have intensified offensive actions on the Melitopol, Berdiansk, and Bakhmut fronts. The Armed Forces liberated eight settlements in the Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk regions.

Recently, A video showed how Ukrainian soldiers raised the Ukrainian flag on the Kurdiumivka dam near Bakhmut.

On June 24, it became known that near Krasnohorivka of the Donetsk region, the Armed Forces of Ukraine managed to free several positions under Russian occupation since 2014.

On June 26, Deputy Minister of Defense Hanna Maliar reported that the Defense Forces of Ukraine took control of the village of Rivnopil in the Donetsk region, which the Russians occupied.

It was reported that the Armed Forces of Ukraine returned more territory during the counteroffensive than Russia captured during the winter offensive, British Defense Minister Ben Wallace.

During a telephone conversation with the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the United States, General Mark Milley, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, said that the Ukrainian forces managed to intercept the strategic initiative.