Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said that the capture of the eastern Ukrainian town of Bakhmut was key to launching a further offensive in the wider region. The battle for Bakhmut is now the longest-running and bloodiest of Russia's year-long military intervention in Ukraine, and both sides have doubled down in the fight for its control. Bakhmut, an industrial town once known for its sparkling wine production and salt mines, had an estimated pre-war population of some 80,000 people. Watch this video for more.
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