Zelensky on the fall of Bakhmut : "Bakhmut is only in our hearts. There is nothing in this place"
The Russian government confirmed the takeover of the city, initially announced by the mercenary group Wagner. The Ukrainian president thanked Biden for new $375 million aid package.
Volodymyr Zelensky and Joe Biden / Cordon Press.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Sunday that Bakhmut is "only in our hearts," hours after the Russian Defense Ministry reported that the private mercenary army Wagner, supported by Russian troops, had seized the town in eastern Ukraine.
Speaking alongside President Joe Biden at the G-7 summit in Hiroshima, Japan, Zelensky did not confirm the seizure of the city but said that "everything" had been destroyed by the Russians. "You have to understand that there is nothing," he said.
The Russian ministry's statement on the seizure of the city came hours after a similar announcement by Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin. However, Ukrainian authorities stated that the fight for Bakhmut was ongoing. The eight-month battle for Bakhmut has been the longest of the conflict in Ukraine.
New million-dollar aid from the United States
Zelensky's comments came as Biden announced $375 million more in aid for Ukraine, including more ammunition, artillery and vehicles. The expenditure was welcomed by the Ukrainian president, who revealed that the United States has already contributed $37 billion to his country.
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