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The battle of Bakhmut, one of the hardest and longest of the war in Ukraine, has acquired a symbolic value over the months that goes far beyond its strategic interest.
The fight for control of this city in eastern Ukraine is reminiscent of what happened in the port of Mariupol, in the south, devastated by months of terrible fighting until it fell into Russian hands in the first half of 2022.
Bakhmut, a small industrial city in eastern Ukraine with a population of 70,000 before the Russian invasion, has been devastated after eight months of heavy fighting between Ukrainians and Russians. Described as “hell on Earth” by Ukrainian soldiers, it is today “practically surrounded”, according to the Russian paramilitary group Wagner.
This battle with incessant artillery fire and meter by meter advances caused immense losses on both sides. Civilians have also paid a heavy price, as have the Ukrainian and foreign volunteers who have come to help them.
Many analysts agree that Bakhmut is not of major strategic importance, nor is it a crucial military target. Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelensky himself said it in an interview with the French newspaper Le Figaro in February: “From a strategic point of view, Bakhmut is not very important because the Russians completely destroyed the city with their artillery.”
With the passing of the months and the bombs, Bakhmut has acquired a more symbolic dimension, in a war of attrition, which is also waged in the field of propaganda and speeches. However, Bakhmut’s control could open the way to its neighbour, Kramatorsk, a large industrial city further west, but still widely protected.
For the Ukrainians, the defense of Bakhmut means not conceding more land to the invader. It is an emblem of resistance. According to RFI special envoy Vincent Souriau, the fall of Bakhmut would be a severe setback for Ukraine and for the spirit of its soldiers, but it would not mean the end of the battle in Donbass either.
For the Russians, the capture of Bakhmut, which would mark Russia’s first victory since the Ukrainian counteroffensives in the fall. Bakhmut is also at the center of the rivalry between the Russian Defense Ministry and Wagner’s boss Yevgeny Prigozhin, who has been trying to gain political stature for months. Prigozhin made Bakhmut almost a personal battle, supposedly to prove the worth of his mercenaries.
Con AFP