Polish general: The defense of Bakhmut is useful for Ukraine, but nothing will happen with its loss
If the Armed Forces of Ukraine lose Bakhmut, nothing will happen, but the defeat of the Russians in Bakhmut would be a disaster for the Kremlin. This opinion was expressed by the Polish general, former head of the National Security Bureau Stanislav Kozei on Polsat.
Kozei said that he trusted the decision of the Ukrainian command.
«The battle for Bakhmut is interpreted differently from the Russian side and differently from the Ukrainian side. The Ukrainians treat Bakhmut as a place where they can inflict huge losses on the Russians. And as long as they can inflict these losses, while the Russians are attacking Bakhmut in waves, and the Ukrainians are defending themselves and can shoot these advancing Russian waves, then from a military point of view it makes sense to defend this Bakhmut»,— said the general.
«Ukraine does not look at Bakhmut as politically, propagandistically and even strategically, because this place does not have any huge strategic value, in the sense that (if) they lose Bakhmut, Ukraine will be open to further Russian invasion&# 187;, — he noted.
But, according to him, the Russians look at Bakhmut more from a political and propaganda point of view.
«For Russia, this is a certain symbol that has been promoted for a long time. If the Russians fail to capture it, it will be a disaster for them, a defeat. On the other hand, if they capture it, they will be able to boast that we have won an important place, we are winning», — Kozei said.
He added that the recent decision of the Ukrainian command and the president to defend further is understandable.
According to his assessment, the Russians are suffering heavy losses in Bakhmut.
«This is fighting in a city, an urban area that is always more favorable to the defender. The one who defends can always take cover in these buildings, can use the infrastructure, having, one might say, such «natural armor» in this city. The attacker must get out, lift himself out of these trenches, if he has them, move forward and reveal himself», — Kozei noted.
- On March 6, the President assembled the Headquarters to decide the fate of Bakhmut. Zaluzhny and Syrsky spoke in favor of continuing the defensive operation and further strengthening positions in Bakhmut.
- Syrsky said that the battles for Bakhmut had reached the highest level of tension.
