Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky traveled on Tuesday to Bakhmut, a city in the east of his country ravaged by intense fighting with Russian forces who have been trying to take it since the summer and currently the hottest point on the front. .
This surprise visit by Mr. Zelensky as close to the clashes appears as a challenge to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin who, at the same time, was presenting decorations in the Kremlin to soldiers and pro-Russian separatist leaders in the east of the Ukraine.
The Ukrainian head of state “met soldiers, spoke with them” on the spot, said the press service of the presidency, without further details.
A video broadcast by Ukrainian state channel Freedom showed him taking a photo of himself alongside soldiers in a building and giving them medals.
“Here in the Donbass, you protect all of Ukraine. It’s not just Bakhmout, it’s the Bakhmout fortress,” he told the soldiers.
Mr. Zelensky went several times near the front such as mid-November to Kherson, in the south, after the withdrawal of Russian troops, and to Sloviansk, at the beginning of December, a few tens of kilometers from the eastern front.
This visit to Bakhmout, however, appears to be the most risky of his trips, as the Russian forces are at the gates of this city.
Troops from Moscow have been trying since the summer to seize it, in particular with the help of mercenaries from the paramilitary group Wagner.
“Eastern Fortress”
Now ravaged by fighting, Bakhmout was once known for its vineyards and salt mines and had a population of around 70,000 before the Russian invasion unleashed in late February.
In recent months, this city has become the site of seemingly massive casualties on both sides through grueling trench warfare, heavy artillery duels and frontal assaults.
If the Russian soldiers claimed the conquest of villages and areas located at the very end of Bakhmout, the Ukrainian forces seem to control the city and part of its surroundings.
Vladimir Putin, for his part, appeared on television on Tuesday presenting decorations to Russian soldiers and political and economic figures, inside the walls of the Kremlin in Moscow.
“Our country has repeatedly faced challenges and defended its sovereignty. Today, Russia faces the same challenge again,” he said after decorating leaders in the pro-Russian separatist east of Ukraine.
Putin will draw conclusions from the past year and set his army’s goals for 2023 at a meeting with senior Russian military officials on Wednesday, the Kremlin said.
Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu will notably report on “the progress of the special military operation” in Ukraine during this meeting, which will involve 15,000 officials.
The Russian president has not visited the front or the territories under Russian occupation in Ukraine since the start of the invasion. On the other hand, he appeared at the beginning of December at the wheel of a car on the Crimean bridge linking Russia to this peninsula annexed in 2014 or even in October on a training ground for mobilized soldiers.
“Extremely difficult” situation
Mr. Shoigu, meanwhile, appeared in a video on Sunday showing him inspecting the deployment of Russian forces in southern Ukraine. The ministry did not specify the exact place and date of this visit.
After a series of Russian military setbacks in northeastern and southern Ukraine, most of the fighting is currently concentrated in the east of this country.
At the same time, Russia opted from October for massive bombardments on Ukrainian infrastructure, which regularly cause power and water cuts.
Vladimir Putin admitted on Tuesday that the situation was “extremely difficult” in the four regions of southern and eastern Ukraine which Moscow claims to annex without having fully conquered them.
A high-ranking officer in the Ukrainian army, General Sergey Nayev, for his part, claimed to see an “increase in the level of threat” of a potential Russian attack from neighboring Belarus, as was the case in the early days of the conflict.
Vladimir Putin traveled to Belarus on Monday for talks with his counterpart and ally Alexander Lukashenko, while the Russian army is currently taking part in “tactical” maneuvers there.
The head of Ukrainian diplomacy Dmytro Kouleba minimized the impact of this meeting on Tuesday, considering that it was a simple political “dance” and that “no essential decision was taken during this meeting “. He nevertheless assured that Ukraine was “ready” for any scenario.
German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier called on his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping on Tuesday to “use his influence” on Vladimir Putin to “end” the war.