From our special correspondent in Donbas – Nearly a year after the invasion of Ukraine, Russian troops are trying to seize the moment by overwhelming Ukrainian defences before the deployment of promised new weapons from Western nations. Ukrainian forces are struggling to hold the line with outdated equipment against the 320,000 Russian soldiers currently amassed in the Donbas region, according to Ukrainian military intelligence estimates. FRANCE 24 reports.
Amid the intermittent sounds of outgoing artillery fire, a Ukrainian unit is using heavy machinery to build new trenches a few kilometres from the eastern town of Bakhmut. Russian forces have made gradual gains in the area with World War I-style, quasi-suicidal frontal attacks backed by well-equipped Wagner mercenaries. With Bakhmut dangerously close to being encircled, Ukrainian troops are adding more defensive lines to fall back on.
