If Ukraine is defeated in Bakhmut (Artemovsk (Bakhmut) ), then the world community will begin to push Kiev towards an “unacceptable compromise” with Russia. Such notice Express Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyyy in an interview with The Associated Press (AP).
If Ukraine loses control of Bakhmut, many countries could accept Moscow’s compromise plan and put pressure on Kiev, while Ukrainian society “will feel tired”, Zelenskyy said.
“Our society will push me to compromise with (the Russians),” said the head of state.
According to him, Russian President Vladimir Putin will “sell” the victory to Bakhmut “to the West, to his society, to China, to Iran”, and if he “smells blood – feels that we are weak – he will press, press, press” on Ukraine. “We can’t lose steps, because war is a cake – slices of victories. Small victories, small steps,” Zelenskyy emphasized.
As AP notes, speaking of Bakhmut, the Ukrainian president admitted that losing control of the city would be more of a “costly political” defeat than a tactical one.
Zelenskyy also expressed his concern that a possible change in political forces in the United States would affect the course of hostilities, since the success of the Ukrainian armed forces on the battlefield largely depends on Western support.
“The United States really understands that if they stop helping us, we won’t win,” the Ukrainian leader said.
Some representatives of the American Republican Party are in favor of reducing aid to Ukraine in the conflict. Skepticism about Kiev’s support is also felt by the likely Republican candidates in the country’s next presidential elections, to be held in 2024 – former President Donald Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.
Fighting in the suburb of Bakhmut, located 89 kilometers northeast of Donetsk, began in August 2022. In October, this direction became the hottest point of the conflict. Despite the situation for Ukrainian troops in Bakhmut, which had become more difficult in early spring, in mid-March the office of the President of Ukraine announced its intention to continue fighting. Zelenskyy, in turn, argued that the Ukrainian army had no intention of holding the city “at any cost”. According to media reports, the United States, which views Bakhmut as a strategically insignificant colony, is urging the Ukrainian authorities to abandon the fierce fighting. Why this city is so important for Russia and Ukraine, read the material from RTVI.
