Kyiv: According to a senior official from Kiev on Saturday, Russian forces have temporarily scaled back their attacks on the besieged city of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine in order to reorganise and fortify their capabilities.
Senior Ukrainian officials also stated that their forces were prepared to launch a long-promised counteroffensive to retake territory that Russia had seized since the war's inception.
Following the longest and most brutal battle of the war, the Wagner private army of Russia declared full control of Bakhmut and started handing over positions to regular troops this week.
Also Read: UN: Migrants who attempted the Mediterranean crossing were returned to Libya
Hanna Maliar, the deputy defence minister for Ukraine, said in a Telegram post that while Russian forces were still attacking, overall offensive activity had decreased.
She added that there had been no combat yesterday or today, neither in the city nor on the flanks, and that Moscow's forces had been bombarding Bakhmut's surroundings and approaches.
The enemy's offensive activity has decreased as a result of the replacement and reorganisation of troops, according to Maliar. "The enemy is attempting to increase its own power."
Also Read: Head of the Muslim World League meets with Pope Francis at the Vatican
A highly anticipated counteroffensive from Kyiv to retake Russian-occupied territory is anticipated to start soon.
The British Broadcasting Corporation was informed by Oleksiy Danilov, Secretary of Ukraine's National Security and Defence Council, that the push could start "tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, or in a week."
Mykhailo Podolyak, a presidential aide, claimed in an interview with the British newspaper The Guardian that preliminary operations, like severing supply lines or blowing up depots, had already started.
Also Read: After a ten-year hiatus, Iraq seeks multilateral cooperation with the Philippines
Ukrainian troops are seen taking an oath and getting ready for battle in a well-made video that Ukraine's top general, Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, posted on Saturday.