Ukraine latest: Fighting in the streets as battle for Bakhmut rages on

Russia is losing seven soldiers for every Ukrainian killed in fierce fighting in and around the city of Bakhmut, a Kyiv defence official has claimed.

Oleksiy Danilov, Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine, spoke about Russia’s high losses as the Kremlin’s Wagner mercenaries claimed to have encircled the Donbas city.

He said: “It is difficult there, but keep in mind that every day our boys and girls send hundreds of them to where they are supposed to go, given that they came here to kill us.” There were reports of fierce fighting in the streets yesterday as Russian forces claimed they were about to take the city, in the east of Ukraine, which has been the focus of intense fighting for months.

It was yesterday reported Ukranian forces appeared to be preparing to withdraw from the city and were destroying bridges there to slow the Russian advance. A woman was killed and two men were badly wounded by shelling while trying to cross a makeshift bridge out of Bakhmut, according to Ukrainian troops who were assisting them. A Ukrainian army representative said it is now too dangerous for civilians to leave the city by vehicle, with people fleeing on foot instead.

The head of Russia’s Wagner private army claimed the city was “practically encircled” with limited routes out.

Russia’s high casualty rate may, in part, be due to the use of Wagner Group mercenaries, many of whom are recruited from prisons and receive only the most basic training.

Bakhmut’s deputy mayor told the BBC there was street fighting between Russian and Ukrainian forces. But Oleksandr Marchenko said Russia was not yet in control, despite constant shelling.

He said: “They have no goal to save the city…their only goal is killing people and the genocide of the Ukrainian people.”

The UK Ministry of Defence confirmed Bakhmut, which Russia has been trying to take for the last six months, is under increasingly severe pressure.

Though it is of little strategic significance, taking Bakhmut would give Russia a much-needed propaganda victory.

Last week, President Volodymyr Zelensky warned that the situation on the eastern front line was becoming “more and more difficult”.

As the fighting rages on, civilians remaining in the area spoke about their daily struggles amid near-constant enemy fire.

Bakhmut resident Hennadiy Mazepa and his wife Natalia Ishkova both chose to remain in the area, even as fierce battles reduced much of the city to rubble. Speaking to the AP yesterday, Ishkova said that they suffered from a lack of food and basic utilities.

“Humanitarian (aid) is given to us only once a month. There is no electricity, no water, no gas,” she said. “I pray to God that all who remain here will survive.”

The Ukranian military are concerned over their decreasing stocks of ammunition, which the current intensive level of fighting has rapidly depleted.

Last week, the US announced a further £333m in military aid to tackle the problem.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the country’s latest package included high-precision Himars artillery rockets and thousands of rounds for howitzers “which Ukraine is using so effectively”.

The package also includes for the first time includes armoured vehicles that can launch bridges – seen as essential for when Ukraine launches its planned spring offensive.

The package also includes demolition munitions and equipment for clearing obstacles to help Ukraine break through dug-in lines.

Since Russia invaded Ukraine a year ago, the US has sent in more than £26.6bn in weapons and equipment.