As Russian momentum stalls, Ukraine considers an offensive in the vicinity of Bakhmut.

Oleksandr Syrskyi, the commander of Ukraine's land forces, has said that Russian forces are depleted in Bakhmut and a Ukrainian counter-offensive could soon be launched, raising the prospect of an unlikely turnaround in the besieged city. His comments come days after Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky made a surprise trip to the front lines of the Donetsk region. Russian troops have launched more than 200 strikes on the area in the past 24 hours alone, but are losing hundreds of men each day in their efforts. The spokesman for the Eastern Grouping of the armed forces, Serhii Cherevatyi, said another area that was seeing intense fire was to the northeast of Bakhmut, on the front line running north from the town of Kreminna. He claimed that Russia "makes several hundred attacks per day, usually more than 300, sometimes more than 400. There were 344 attacks and 17 combat engagements over the last day." A counter-offensive has seemed an unlikely prospect for several weeks, as troops from Russia's Wagner mercenary group have been trying to take the city at any cost, despite losses in both manpower and equipment.
The Ukrainian military's General Staff has said that while Bakhmut is still expected to see heavy fighting, Russia's "offensive potential is decreasing" there. Western intelligence has also reported that the tempo of Russian operations around Bakhmut appears to be slowing. This shift may indicate a change in Russia's priorities, as some Russian MoD units have been reallocated to other sectors. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko handed out awards to troops defending Bakhmut during a morale-boosting trip on Wednesday. The lengthy resistance of Ukrainian troops could yet vindicate his decision to ignore Western calls to tactically retreat from Bakhmut as the Russian offensive closed in. Zelensky told CNN earlier this month that after Bakhmut, the Russians could go further to other towns in Ukraine, in the Donetsk direction.