Tale of a Battle

Farooque Chowdhury

Artyomovsk, named after a Bolshevik, while the Kiev regime names it Bakhmut, has gone through a part of the ongoing Ukraine War for months. Till now, battle in the town was the longest in this war. Russia has won over the town while Zelensky, the leader of the Kiev regime, now finds the town in his heart. This was his pronouncement in Tokyo as he answered journalists to the question: Is the town in Kiev’s grip?

The town was subject of military analysis as it found itself within a frame of changes in terms of military significance. Initially, the NATO camp, the sponsor of the war, and its puppet regime in Kiev told: The town is strategically significant. The Kiev leader boldly assured to have a stand on the town, make it a fortress like Stalingrad, never to give up the town, as it opens roads to strategic gains deep in Ukraine.

The NATO-dictated media was circulating news of heroic fight by the Kiev fighters, and dire losses and failures of a Russian private military company (PMC) engaged with battle in the town. There were stories of fierce resistance, advances, and successes by the Kiev soldiers, and turning of table by the elite unit the Kiev regime sent to the town.

Then, the NATO-media story gradually began changing colours: The town is not that much important strategically, it is tactically important, it is not even important tactically, it carries no significance, the Russian PMC has taken hold of only a corner of the town, the Russian fighters are fleeing away, the town is being used to erode Russian military force in terms of manpower and armaments, the town is being used to gain time to complete preparations for counteroffensive by the Kiev party.

Then, a different type of news began trickling: The Kiev party’s master in Washington DC is suggesting giving up the town as it carries no strategic value, the Kiev leaders insisting with their stand to continue with the fight in the town, Ukraine’s military leadership prefers withdrawal from the town, the political leadership likes to continue with the tact of fighting in the town, and both the political and military leaderships came into unanimous agreement – continue with the fight – showing unity within Kiev leadership. News was coming out: The Washington masters were not happy with the Kiev’s tact centering the town – prolonging the fight in the town.

The Russian PMC was claiming gains by small steps in the town, lack of ammunition, advancing each day, sometimes a few hundred meters a day.

Suddenly, the imperialist media began releasing another type of news –Kiev is deploying untrained soldiers, they are tired, outnumbered and out-ammunitioned, only a few buildings are in Kiev soldiers’ control.

The Russian PMC announced, at one stage, within days, the town will be fully won.
It was followed by denials by the Kiev leadership. Then, came, the Kiev leader’s that heart-feeling– ‘Bakhmut is in our hearts’. It took about a week by the NATO-media to indicate Kiev’s defeat and Russia’s victory in the town.

About this war, Russia is talking least, publicising least. Moreover, its tact has been changed. Many experts were telling the Kiev leadership is diminishing the Russian force. The Russians kept quiet at that time. Now, they are telling Kiev has lost a core part of its main force in the battle for the town. A few recent reports by a part of NATO-media now corroborate the Russian claim.

In this war, Russia hit Kiev’s infrastructure first. Then, it moved to hit trains carrying ammunitions. It, then, hit armaments workshops and ammunition depots. It is telling about terrorist activities by the Kiev regime. This telling is building up arguments for identifying the Kiev leadership as terrorists, and premise to make further hits. Russia is claiming it is not its war, but a special military operation against the Nazis and terrorists in Ukraine, which carry legal implication. Russia is using less costly weapons, the Soviet-era weapons. Those are to be depleted, as those are from the 1960s and the ‘70s. It does not matter whether it is tank or bomb or artillery piece. With minimum cost, it has modified near-obsolete bombs into near-smart bombs that are hard to target, that are almost missed by radars, and that go below radar’s frame within a very short time. In the area of tactics, there are opposites of usual tact.

Now, a part of the NATO-media has started telling about these Russian features. They are now reporting about tiredness and frustration of the Kiev soldiers, hard drive by Kiev recruiters–door-to-door–to gather new soldiers, no exemption of Prisoners of War, freed by Russia, from second term of deployment although deploying a POW for second term is not the practice, high rate of depletion of soldiers in Kiev’s army units deployed at frontlines, deploying soldiers without training. There are now many similar reports in a part of NATO-media, which are frustrating for the Kiev supporters.

The battle of Artyomovsk indicates Russia’s future military victory. A part of the EU/NATO leadership is telling Kiev has already missed its last chance while another part is telling Kiev is going to miss its last chance to snatch victory. There are other sides of the war that also show uncomfortable position of the NATO camp in this war.

[29.05.2023]

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Frontier
Vol 55, No. 51, Jun 18 - 24, 2023