By MSTYSLAV CHERNOV and JAMEY KEATEN
Associated Press
OUTSIDE BAKHMUT, Ukraine (AP) — Defenders of Ukraine’s city of Bakhmut are keeping up the pressure even though Russian forces declared victory there after the longest, deadliest battle of the war so far. The ongoing defense gives commanders in Moscow another thing to think about ahead of an anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive. Ukraine’s deputy defense minister said artillery shelling continues at levels similar to those at the height of the nine-month fight over the city. She says the battle is evolving into a new phase. Ukrainian defenders still control the western fringes of Bakhmut. From the Kremlin’s perspective, the area around the city is part of the more than 1,000-kilometer (621-mile) front line that the Russian military must hold.
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