Ukraine’s aim is to prevent Russian troops from disrupting breakthrough near Bakhmut – analyst

Oleksiy Yizhak, an analyst at the National Institute for Strategic Studies, said this on Espreso TV. 

"In the east, near Bakhmut, the advance and containment of Russian troops is slow and steady. The defense is being maintained further south with the same objective to prevent a breakthrough and redeployment of Russian forces. This is happening in order to close the breakthrough that is planned there," said Oleksiy Yizhak.

According to him, the fact that this breakthrough is close, its parameters are already clear, and the attitude of our partners is changing as to how Ukraine carried out this operation.

The analyst said that there was a lot of dissatisfaction on the part of the partners. But Ukraine has convinced its partners that everything has been done right in recent months.

"The fortifications that Russia has been building for a long time are now breaking through at the front. The first line is broken through, the second line is being broken through and there are discussions on how strong the third line is," added Yizhak.

• Ukrainian troops continue their offensive and have made gains near Klishchiivka in the Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia regions.

• Serhiy Zgurets, director of the Defense Express information and consulting company, said that the encirclement of Bakhmut is approaching, or a "goodwill gesture" by the Russian forces from the city.