Financial Times: Yermak may have made decision to hold Bakhmut’s defense for so long
The Financial Times reports that the decision to maintain a prolonged defense of Bakhmut may have come from Head of the Presidential Office Andriy Yermak.
This was reported by Censor.NET citing Ukrainska Pravda.
"According to two Ukrainian officials involved in military planning, Yermak repeatedly ignored the military leadership’s decisions and in some situations exercised ‘full influence’ over combat operations. One of the most notable examples, they said, was his impact on the battle for Bakhmut," the publication writes.
FT recalls that Bakhmut was originally built as a fortress in 1571 and, by late 2022, found itself under siege again as Russian forces advanced.
"Many Ukrainian frontline commanders called for a strategic withdrawal, but Yermak saw an opportunity to tell a different story. Thanks to its history, the fortress of Bakhmut carried a certain narrative power. It was meant to become a symbol of Ukraine’s unbreakable resistance. Zelenskyy also wanted a major battlefield victory to boost national morale. Bakhmut was not supposed to fall. It couldn’t," the article states.
Author Christopher Miller notes that after seven months of intense fighting, Bakhmut "had already become hell."
"When I reported from the city in early December 2022, the city center was destroyed. Russian ground assaults were relentless, even hardened American generals were struck by the brutality of the fighting and the staggering losses Moscow suffered. Yet, they kept advancing," Miller said.
According to the Financial Times, at the height of the fighting on December 20, 2022, Zelenskyy made a secret and risky visit to the Bakhmut front accompanied by Yermak. The following day, the Ukrainian president flew to the United States and presented a worn Ukrainian flag, signed by soldiers in Bakhmut, at a joint session of Congress.
The publication recalls that then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi raised the flag above the podium to thunderous applause.
"Ukraine had its own Alamo (the town of Alamo is located in Texas, USA. The Battle of the Alamo in 1836 was the most famous battle of the Texas Revolution. Thanks to the defenders’ heroism, the battle became a symbol of Texas’s fight for independence – ed.). But behind the scenes, Western officials were concerned about the losses. Ukrainian commanders complained that resources were being wasted without producing significant tactical effects. Many said the decision to hold the position was made within the president’s circle, not by the military," the article states.
According to Miller, one of the commanders involved in the fighting called the prolonged defense of Bakhmut "a political maneuver disguised as heroism."
"In the end, the fortress of Bakhmut fell. The losses undermined Ukraine’s 2023 counteroffensive, which also ended in failure. ‘It was a mistake to stay in Bakhmut for so long,’ said a senior Ukrainian official involved in military planning. ‘We had our orders.’ I asked from whom, and he named the commander of Ukraine’s ground forces. But that general received his own orders, the official added. They came from the Presidential Office. ‘You can guess from whom,’" FT writes.
