Barkhivka, the eastern part of Bakhmut, is again occupied by Ukraine

International Desk: Ukraine will take over a part of Bakhmut again. Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin made the comments in an audio message on Monday. Said, Ukrainian troops have occupied Barkhivka, the eastern part of Bakhmut.

Part of Barkhivka is already out of control, Prigozhin said. Soldiers are quietly withdrawing from the battlefield. It's insulting. Wagner announced last month that it would take control of Bakhmut after a nearly year-long battle. They later handed over the city to Russian authorities earlier this month. In the audio message, Prigogine called on Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Army Chief Valery Gerasimov to visit the battlefield and boost the morale of the troops.

Calling on the soldiers to fight bravely, he said, "Go ahead, you can do it." And if you can't, fight and die bravely. Meanwhile, the commander of the Ukrainian infantry, Oleksandr Sirsky, said on Monday that the Ukrainian forces will continue the operation in the direction of Bakhmut. It should be noted that Prigogine has been arguing against Shoigu and Gerasimov for the past few months. He alleged that they had failed to provide sufficient ammunition and support for Wagner on the battlefield and had caused Wagner to suffer unnecessarily heavy losses.