01:08'We are handing over positions to the military' - Prigozhin on start of Wagner PMC’s withdrawal from Artemovsk
Wagner Private Military Company (PMC) founder Yevgeny Prigozhin discussed the group’s withdrawal from Artemovsk (Bakhmut) on Thursday, with units handing over positions to the Russian military.
"We are withdrawing units from Bakhmut (Artemovsk) today. It's five in the morning on 25 May. By 1 June, the majority of the units are moving to the rear camps, and we are handing over positions to the military. The military will be given ammunition, positions, everything, including dry rations. But if it is difficult for the military, of course, we will leave those who had a major role in the capture of Bakhmut (Artemovsk) today," he said.
Footage posted on Prigozhin's Telegram channel on Thursday showed him talking with his troops at an undisclosed location.
On May 20, Prigozhin reported the 'complete capture of Bakhmut (Artemovsk)' after a 224-day military offensive in the city.
The following day, the Russian Defence Ministry reported that in 'Artemovsk [Bakhmut] tactical direction, as a result of offensive actions by Wagner assault units, supported by artillery and aviation of the Yug Group of Forces, the liberation of Artemovsk [Bakhmut] has been completed'.
Also on May 21, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky rejected the claim that the city was under Russian control, at a news conference on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Hiroshima.
On Thursday, Ukrainian Deputy Defence Minister Anna Maliar confirmed the regrouping of Wagner PMC units.
"The enemy has replaced Wagner units with regular army units in the suburbs of Bakhmut [Artemovsk]. Currently, the Wagner units remain in the city of Bakhmut [Artemovsk]," the deputy minister said.
She added that Ukrainian troops controlled the outskirts of the city in the southwestern part, in the Samolet district.
Moscow launched a military offensive in Ukraine in late February 2022 after recognising the independence of the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics (DPR and LPR), claiming that Kiev had failed to guarantee their special status under the 2014 Minsk Agreements, and urging Ukraine to declare itself officially neutral and give assurances that it would never join NATO.
Kiev denounced the Russian action as an invasion. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky imposed martial law throughout the country, announcing a general mobilisation, while the EU and the US imposed several rounds of sanctions on Moscow.
01:08Mandatory credit: 'Prigozhin's hat' Telegram channel
Wagner Private Military Company (PMC) founder Yevgeny Prigozhin discussed the group’s withdrawal from Artemovsk (Bakhmut) on Thursday, with units handing over positions to the Russian military.
"We are withdrawing units from Bakhmut (Artemovsk) today. It's five in the morning on 25 May. By 1 June, the majority of the units are moving to the rear camps, and we are handing over positions to the military. The military will be given ammunition, positions, everything, including dry rations. But if it is difficult for the military, of course, we will leave those who had a major role in the capture of Bakhmut (Artemovsk) today," he said.
Footage posted on Prigozhin's Telegram channel on Thursday showed him talking with his troops at an undisclosed location.
On May 20, Prigozhin reported the 'complete capture of Bakhmut (Artemovsk)' after a 224-day military offensive in the city.
The following day, the Russian Defence Ministry reported that in 'Artemovsk [Bakhmut] tactical direction, as a result of offensive actions by Wagner assault units, supported by artillery and aviation of the Yug Group of Forces, the liberation of Artemovsk [Bakhmut] has been completed'.
Also on May 21, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky rejected the claim that the city was under Russian control, at a news conference on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Hiroshima.
On Thursday, Ukrainian Deputy Defence Minister Anna Maliar confirmed the regrouping of Wagner PMC units.
"The enemy has replaced Wagner units with regular army units in the suburbs of Bakhmut [Artemovsk]. Currently, the Wagner units remain in the city of Bakhmut [Artemovsk]," the deputy minister said.
She added that Ukrainian troops controlled the outskirts of the city in the southwestern part, in the Samolet district.
Moscow launched a military offensive in Ukraine in late February 2022 after recognising the independence of the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics (DPR and LPR), claiming that Kiev had failed to guarantee their special status under the 2014 Minsk Agreements, and urging Ukraine to declare itself officially neutral and give assurances that it would never join NATO.
Kiev denounced the Russian action as an invasion. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky imposed martial law throughout the country, announcing a general mobilisation, while the EU and the US imposed several rounds of sanctions on Moscow.