Russia is unlikely to meet its goal of capturing Bakhmut by Feb. 24, the Institute for the Study of War reported on Feb. 16.
National Security and Defense Council Secretary Oleksiy Danilov reportedly said that Moscow plans to capture Bakhmut to mark the first year of its full-scale war.
According to the ISW, capturing Bakhmut by Feb. 24 would “require a significantly higher rate of Russian advance than anything seen for many months.” Russian forces, however, “do not appear to be quickening their rate of advance.”
On Feb. 16, Russian forces fired at a residential area in Bakhmut, Donetsk Oblast, with artillery and MLRS, the Prosecutor General’s Office reported.
The attack killed three men and two women, injured nine people, and damaged several residential buildings.
Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said on Feb. 16 that 6,000 civilians are still living in the front-line city of Bakhmut. She urged them to evacuate as soon as possible.
Russia’s strategy of attacking Bakhmut and Vuhledar in Donetsk Oblast aims to delay Ukraine’s counteroffensive, Andriy Yusov, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry’s Main Intelligence Directorate spokesperson, reported on Feb. 15.
