Ukraine: Russia facing a 'dilemma' over failed assaults in Vuhledar
Russia is facing a "dilemma" after several assaults in Donetsk in eastern Ukraine have failed, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) has said.
In its latest intelligence update, the MOD said "the Russian command likely saw a breakthrough at Vuhledar", a sector of Donetsk Oblast, "as a key way to achieve an operationally significant breakthrough in Ukraine's lines".
But, the update goes on to say, Russian planners are "likely facing the dilemma of attempting another Vuhledar assault or supporting intense fighting further north near Bakhmut and Kremina".
The update also mentioned that the Russian ministry of defence had released a video of a rare visit to Ukraine by its defence minister Sergei Shoigu.
General Rustam Muradov was the only field commander accompanying Mr Shoigu on the trip to the Ukraine frontline, which is notable, the update said, because "Muradov is responsible for the Vuhledar sector of Donetsk Oblast, where several assaults have failed in the last three months".
The visits to the Ukrainian frontline come amid reports of a deepening rift between the head of the Wagner Group and Russia's defence ministry over claims that the mercenary force is lacking the ammunition and reinforcements it needs to win the months-long battle for Ukraine's Bakhmut.
The MOD said the visit comes after Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Wagner Group, visited frontline troops, and added that Mr Shoigu's visit was "partially in response to recent footage of" Mr Prigozhin's visit.
"Wagner is in a high-profile dispute with the Russian Ministry of Defence and Shoigu is likely sensitive to being compared to Prigozhin," the update said.
Earlier this week, the MOD said Russia is deploying "vintage" armoured personnel carriers from the 1950s to Ukraine as it continues to suffer heavy armoured vehicle losses.
It comes after Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky asked his military commanders to increase defence around the besieged Donbas town of Bakhmut.
Officials in the besieged city have said there is fighting on the streets, but Russia has not yet taken control – with the MOD saying the area is "under increasingly severe pressure".
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