NEAR BAKHMUT, Sept 23 (Reuters) – The use of heavy weapons supplied by the West in the fierce battle on the outskirts of Bakhmut, which was captured by Russia in May, is inflicting significant casualties on enemy lines. Ukrainian commanders told Reuters.
Ukrainian troops, encouraged by last week’s capture of the key village of Klishchiivka, have praised the 155 millimeter howitzers as key equipment provided by the United States and its NATO allies.
The unit’s commander, Oleksandr, stated that the Ukrainian armed forces “rely heavily” on heavy artillery, including the Polish-made Krab cannon and the American-made M109 self-propelled howitzer.
“Even a cannon can completely change the situation. An attack can be stopped with one of those cannons,” he said.
“The main thing is to aim where you need to. They (the Russians) hate our weapons. That’s what we deduce from our interceptions. We hear that we are giving them hell and they wonder how much ammunition we have left.”
Oleksandr, 30, described Klishchiivka – a village on the heights south of the devastated city of Bakhmut – as “one of the places they (the Russians) were clinging to”.
“We’ll see what’s next. We’ll build on our success,” he said.
Ukrainian commanders have described the capture of Klischiivka and nearby Andriivka as stepping stones to recapturing Bakhmut, which fell to the Russians after months of some of the heaviest fighting of the war.
The advances have been among the most significant of the Ukrainian counteroffensive, which began in June and has struggled to break entrenched Russian lines.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and senior officials have applauded the progress and rejected Western criticism that the counteroffensive is moving too slowly. (Reporting by Anna Voitenko; Writing by Ronald Popeski; Edited in Spanish by Ricardo Figueroa)
Source: Ambito
