BLAGOVESHCHENSK, February 10. /TASS/. All roads near the city of Artyomovsk (called Bakhmut in Ukraine) are under the fire control of Russia’s Armed Forces, Igor Kimakovsky, an advisor to the acting head of the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), told TASS on the sidelines of the AmurMediaForum 2023 event on Friday.

"The liberation of Krasnaya Gora has been announced, which makes it clear that all roads are now within our firing range. Clearly, there aren’t just main roads and it’s possible to move along forest belts and on rough tracks so Ukrainian troops still have routes to deliver reserves, reinforcements and ammunition but it should be said that all roads are under the fire control of the Russian Armed Forces," he pointed out.

According to Kimakovsky, Ukrainian troops will soon be in an operational encirclement and will have to surrender Artyomovsk. Acting DPR Head Denis Pushilin said earlier that fighting was raging in the city’s neighborhoods that used to be controlled by the Ukrainian army.

Bloomberg reported on Thursday, citing US and EU officials, that Western countries recommended Kiev bide its time, save its forces and wait for the arrival of Leopard tanks in order to launch an offensive in the spring, even if it meant surrendering Artyomovsk.