British secret services see tensions between the Russian government and the Russian private army as a sign of the precarious situation in the Ukraine war.
The conflicts, some of which have been played out in public, made it clear how difficult it is to maintain sufficient levels of manpower and ammunition in the current Russian offensive, according to the British Ministry of Defense’s daily briefing.
The head of the Wagner Group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, had repeatedly criticized the Russian military leadership. According to Prigozhin, the Wagner fighters blocked Bakhmut, and now the Ukrainian soldiers are trying to encircle the Russian units and break the blockade.
Prigozhin: “We should also finish our work”
“Ukrainian armed forces will fight for Artemovsk (Russian for Bakhmut) to the end, that’s obvious. We should do our job to the end,” Prigozhin said. He again demanded more ammunition from the Russian military leadership.
The fact that Ukraine is continuing to defend the heavily contested city of Bakhmut is weakening the armed forces on both sides, the British said. The Ukrainians were said to have been able to stabilize their defense line over the weekend after Russian troops had previously penetrated the north of the city.
Supply, on the other hand, is becoming increasingly difficult because important access routes have been destroyed and the Ukrainians are increasingly having to resort to muddy, unpaved roads for supplies.
The British Ministry of Defense has published daily updates on the course of the war since the start of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, citing intelligence information. In doing so, the British government wants to both counter the Russian portrayal and keep allies in line. Moscow accuses London of a disinformation campaign.
