Ukraine: Zelenskiy denies Russian claims to have taken Bakhmut
by Peter Beaumont and Julian Borger from World news | The Guardian on (#6BTY3)
Bakhmut is only in our hearts. There is nothing ... just ruins and dead Russians,' says Ukraine's president
Ukraine has rejected Russian claims to have captured Bakhmut, insisting its forces still have a foothold in the Donbas city and are steadily encircling the Russian mercenaries holding the ruined town centre.
It was impossible to verify the conflicting claims in a battle of attrition for a devastated city, which has assumed symbolic importance as a measure of which side has the resilience to prevail in the war overall, as Kyiv prepares to unleash a broader counteroffensive against Putin's occupation forces.
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