Ukrainian soldiers are heroically defending Bakhmut direction, weakening the Russians so that later trained reserves with new equipment can push back the enemy, spokesman for the Eastern Group of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Serhiy Cherevaty said.

"So far, if we look at the entire annual retrospective of the war, we will see that in almost all operations, our headquarters, the command outplayed the enemy. And exactly what the defenders of Bakhmut frontline are doing now, heroically defending this segment of the front – they exhaust, bleed, weaken the enemy. So that later, when our reserves arrive, when they are ready, including with new equipment, it would be much easier for them to throw the enemy out of our land," he said on the air of the National Telethon on Thursday.

According to the General Staff, some 59 attacks and 29 clashes took place in the area of Bakhmut itself.

In just a day, the invaders lost 94 servicemen killed and 121 were wounded.

Cherevaty said "if there is a need to make a tactical retreat, it will be done," inflicting maximum losses on the enemy.

"Bakhmut sector of the frontline is the epicenter of hostilities today. The Russians stormed throughout the day in the area of the settlement. Orikhove-Vasylivka, Dubove-Vasylivka, directly Bakhmut, Ivanivske," he said.