The head of the Russian “Wagner” group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, announced on Sunday that his forces had taken control of the Ukrainian town of Krasna Hora, located a few kilometers north of Bakhmut, which Moscow has been trying to control for months.
Prigozhin’s media office quoted him as saying, “Today, the offensive units of Wagner took control of the town of Krasna Hora.”
The head of “Wagner”, which is actively participating in the fighting in Ukraine, predicted that the war would continue for years, while Moscow had started its operations on February 24, 2022.
Prigozhin said in a video interview released late Friday that it could take between 18 months and two years for Russia to secure full control of Ukraine’s eastern Donbass region.
The following are the highlights of the Wagner President’s speech:
- The war could last for three years if Moscow decided to seize wider areas east of the Dnipro River.
- Russian forces must capture the strategic city of Bakhmut to advance their campaign, but they encounter fierce resistance from the Ukrainian defenders.
- Russia should set clear goals in its nearly year-old campaign: to firmly establish itself in eastern Ukraine, or move forward to seize more territory.
- There is a need to take control of Bakhmut so that our troops can operate comfortably.
The Ukrainian forces, the Russian army and the “Wagner” group have been waging a fierce battle of attrition in the Bakhmut region for months.
Mykhailo Podolak, advisor to President Volodymyr Zelensky, stressed earlier this month that there is a need for more weapons to repel the Russian forces, which have escalated their attacks in this strategic area.