Ukraine recaptures village near Bakhmut, Zelenskiy says

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy announced that Ukraine had reclaimed an eastern village on Bakhmut’s southern flank, its second major victory in three days in its fierce counteroffensive against Russia.

“Today I would like to particularly commend the soldiers who, step by step, are returning to Ukraine what belongs to it, namely an area of Bakhmut,” Zelenskiy stated in his nightly video message.
After Kyiv claimed control of Andriivka, a tiny settlement 9 km (6 miles) south of Bakhmut, the intense war for Klishchiivka lasted weeks.

The victories are among Ukraine’s most important in its counteroffensive, which began in June and has struggled to break through Russian lines.

Ukrainian ground forces commander Oleksandr Syrskyi, who also controls the counteroffensive, released a video of Ukrainian forces flying the blue and yellow national flag on wrecked buildings with fighting in the background.

“Klishchiivka was cleared of the Russians,” Syrskyi, who frequently visits the Bakhmut frontline to strategize and bolster morale, wrote on Telegram.

Reuters could not corroborate Ukrainian reports, and Moscow did not respond. Russia’s military ministry reported in its daily briefing on Sunday that its soldiers continued to attack near Klishchiivka, a pre-war settlement of 400.
Ukrainian military analysts warned this week that liberating towns around Bakhmut would allow the force to push from the southern flank.

“Ukraine always gets its own back,” Zelenskiy’s Telegram chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, commented.

Zelenskiy hailed the 80th airborne assault brigade, 5th assault brigade, “glorious 95th,” and national police assault brigade for their success.

Ilia Yevlash, the spokesperson for eastern Ukrainian troops, said the battle caused “powerful damage” to Russian airborne units, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov’s “Akhmat” battalion, Storm-Z of Russian criminals, the Russian General Staff’s military intelligence, and motorized rifle units.

“So, now we have gained a base that will allow us to develop offensive actions and liberate our land from invaders,” Yevlash posted on Telegram.

Russia is still trying to retake the settlement, according to Ukrainian Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar.

“Today we fought enemy attacks all day,” she stated.

Klishchiivka has been under the Russian administration since January. Moscow controls huge parts of eastern and southern Ukraine.

Klishchiivka, like Andriivka and other eastern Ukrainian settlements, was converted into rubles during the long war for Bakhmut, which Russia took in May.