Russian troops are preparing for defense in Svatove direction - AFU company commander Fedorenko

He said this on Espreso TV channel.

"The situation has slightly changed. Speaking of the Svatove direction, the Russian enemy is on the defensive along most of the front line. They are waiting for the Ukrainian counteroffensive. However, they keep hoping to improve their positions. That's why the Russian army continues to work with strike and assault groups in the Svatove direction. The situation is the same near the town of Kreminna," said Fedorenko.

The company commander added that heavy fighting continues in the Bakhmut direction.

"The Russian troops are trying to find a weak spot in Ukraine's defense. The adversary is not successful and suffers heavy losses. Yesterday we managed to detect and destroy an enemy group that was trying to conduct reconnaissance in the Svatove direction. The situation in the Bakhmut sector is completely different. The Kremlin has set a goal to capture Bakhmut by May 9. Accordingly, the enemy is concentrating large forces in this direction," he added.

• Since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion, Ukrainian defense forces have eliminated 191,420 Russian soldiers.