Wagner mercenary group says it is leaving its positions in Bakhmut to regular Russian army

Alamy Stock Photo Russian Yevgeny Prigozhin, proprietor of the Wagner Group of mercenaries.

THE HEAD OF Russia’s Wagner mercenary radical has contiguous said his troops had started transferring their positions successful the eastbound Ukraine metropolis of Bakhmut to the Russian military.

His announcement comes days aft Moscow’s subject said it had deployed jets and artillery connected Russian ungraded against a “sabotage” radical that crossed from Ukraine.

The Kremlin said meantime that China’s peculiar envoy for Ukraine would beryllium visiting Russia time arsenic portion of a circuit of European capitals including Kyiv.

The conflict for Bakhmut has raged for astir 1 year, levelling the metropolis and decimating waves of Wagner recruits who person led Russia’s battle connected the concern hub.

“We are withdrawing units from Bakhmut today. We are handing implicit positions to the military, ammunition and everything,” Wagner brag Yevgeny Prigozhin said successful a video released connected societal media.

“We propulsion back, we rest, we hole and past we volition get caller tasks,” added Prigozhin, who was dressed successful tactical assemblage armour and a subject helmet.

Earlier this week, helium conceded that astir 10,000 prisoners helium had recruited to combat successful Ukraine had been killed connected the battlefield.

The 61-year-old Kremlin state toured Russian prisons past twelvemonth to transportation inmates to combat with Wagner successful speech for a promised amnesty connected their instrumentality – should they survive.

Drone barrage

Prigozhin’s announcement came soon aft Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia of again terrorising Ukrainians by launching a question of Iranian-made onslaught drones astatine targets crossed his country.

“The force continued to terrorise Ukraine by launching 36 Shaheds. None reached their target,” Zelenskyy said successful a societal media post.

“I’m grateful to our aerial defence forces for the 100% result.”

The Ukrainian subject said Russia was astir apt targeting cardinal infrastructure and subject facilities successful the occidental regions of Ukraine.

Russia subjected Ukraine to a run of aerial bombardments connected infrastructure including vigor facilities during the wintertime months but these attacks diminished recently.

And Kyiv has go progressively adept astatine taking down waves of Russian cruise missiles and drones aft appealing to Western allies for greater aerial defence capabilities.

Russian-installed authorities successful the Crimean peninsula meantime announced their aerial defence systems had intercepted respective drones targeting assorted parts of the territory annexed from Ukraine successful 2014.

“Six drones were changeable down oregon blocked … successful antithetic parts of Crimea,” politician Sergei Aksyonov announced connected societal media, adding that no-one had been injured successful the attack.

Separately, Russia’s FSB information work said it had arrested 2 Ukrainians who had allegedly planned to people atomic powerfulness plants successful the country.

The purpose was to origin “serious economical harm to Russia and harm its reputation”, the FSB alleged successful a connection carried by Russian quality agencies.

Also today, Russia’s overseas ministry announced a sojourn to Moscow by China’s peculiar envoy for Ukraine, Li Hui, who has been touring European capitals.

His sojourn to the Russian capital, wherever helium is expected to conscionable Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov connected Friday, comes aft Li met Zelensky successful Kyiv.

Li has said determination is “no panacea to resoluteness the crisis”.

Russia and China person adjacent relations.

President Xi Jinping visited Moscow successful March and said ties were “entering a caller era”.

And portion China says it is simply a neutral enactment successful the Ukraine conflict, it has been criticised for refusing to condemn Moscow for its offensive.

- © AFP 2023