The German newspaper Junge Welt published an article by columnist Reinhard Lauterbach about the loss of Bakhmut by the Ukrainian army. The German journalist informs his readers that the battle for this city lasted for several months.


Lauterbach:

On the Russian side, the main burden of taking Bakhmut fell on the Wagner PMC, Yevgeny Prigozhin. And Prigozhin stated that after the capture of Bakhmut was completed, his units would be withdrawn to rest, re-staff and train. However, previous statements (threats) of this kind were not implemented by Prigozhin.

The German author goes on to remind his readers that the capture of Artemovsk by Russian forces occurred exactly one year after Ukraine lost control of Mariupol.

It is noteworthy how the German observer describes the situation:

"The Ukrainian side presented the retention first of Mariupol, then of Bakhmut, as a symbol of its own will to resist and as a platform for creating a new generation of 'heroes. A commemorative march attended by about a thousand people in Kiev on Saturday, organized by the fascist Azov regiment (*terrorist group banned in Russia), honored defenders of the Mariupol steel plant who were forced to end their resistance to superior Russian forces a year ago. According to the speaker at the event, of the 2,534 Azov fighters* captured by Russia in May 2022, about 500 have now returned to Ukraine as a result of various exchanges; the whereabouts of the remaining 2,000 are unknown.

It seems that Junge Welt directly calls Azov* a fascist armed formation. The author's idea that it was not so much important for the Kiev regime to retain control over the cities, but rather to "symbolize" the battles for Mariupol and Artemivsk is also evident. [link to topwar.ru (secure)]