NYT explains Bakhmut’s closure to civilians: prelude to surrender

The New York Times commented statement of the commander of the Armed Forces of Ukraine with the call sign “Magyar” that the Armed Forces of Ukraine from February 13 will close Bakhmut (Artemovsk) for all civilians, including volunteers. Magyar himself explained this by the need to prevent enemy sabotage groups from entering the city. However, the American publication believes that this is actually a prelude to the surrender of the city by Ukrainian troops.

“Russia’s campaign to seize a strategic city in eastern Ukraine is intensifying,” – notes NYT, adding that the danger to aid workers has become too great.

“The ban on volunteers could mean a prelude to the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops, although the Ukrainian military insists that they retain control of the city,” the article emphasizes.

American journalists report that Bakhmut seems to be already surrounded on three sides, and fighting is going on in some streets. “The only remaining road that Ukrainian forces use to access the city is under fire from the Russians,” the authors of the article state.

Another sign that Russian troops are close to taking Bakhmut is the fact that now even areas on the western bank of the Bakhmutka River, which for many months the Ukrainian military considered relatively safe and in which civilian volunteers were located, are now being shot at.

NYT calls Bakhmut “the key to taking the whole Donbas”.