On May 7 and 8, Russian forces intensified their assault on Ukrainian positions in Bakhmut, and the intensity of artillery fire from the Russians also increased. The occupiers probably advanced slightly within the city limits.

Analysts at the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) wrote about this. They also stated that additional forces of the Wagner PMC have been redeployed to the Bakhmut area, but the arrival of Kadyrovites to the Bakhmut direction announced by Russian military bloggers finds no confirmation.

Analysts stated that Russia continues to concentrate its efforts on the complete capture of the Donetsk region, with fierce fighting continuing for Bakhmut.

Against the background of reports of intensified offensive operations of the Wagner PMC, the mercenaries advanced slightly on May 7-8, in particular, in the western part of Bakhmut. This is confirmed by the geolocation of footage that appeared on the network. Russian military bloggers wrote about the intensification of the assault of the "Wagnerites" and the shelling of Ukrainian positions in the city. The owner of the PMC Yevgeny Prigozhin also spoke about the promotion.

"Wagner financier Yevgeny Prigozhin said on May 7 that Wagner had advanced 280 meters in Bakhmut and that Ukrainian forces now control 2.37 square kilometers of the city," ISW wrote.

At the same time, information circulated by the Russian Federation about the alleged arrival of Kadyrov units in the Bakhmut direction was denied by a Russian military correspondent, and ISW analysts did not find any confirmation to the contrary.

In addition to Bakhmut, Russian military bloggers claim that since May 7, the occupiers have intensified their assaults on a number of settlements in the Bakhmut direction.

"Russian mil loggers stated on May 7 that Russian forces also intensified assaults on Ukrainian positions near Bogdanovka (6 km northwest of Bakhmut), Chasov Yar (13 km west of Bogdanovka), Predtechino (14 km southwest of Bakhmut) and Ivanovskoye (6 km west of Bakhmut) on May 8," the report noted.

At the same time, on 8 May, the Ukrainian General Staff reported that Russian troops carried out unsuccessful offensive operations in the area of Chromovoye (directly west of Bakhmut), Ivanovskoye, Chasov Yar, and Stupochki (14 km southwest of Bakhmut).

At the same time, Russia is stepping up shelling in the Bakhmut direction, in particular with artillery, which refutes recent statements by Prigozhin about the alleged lack of ammunition in this area of combat operations. Thus, according to OK Vostok on May 8, Russian troops conducted 29 strikes in the Bakhmut direction.

Sergei Cherevatiy, the spokesman for the Eastern Group of Forces, said that Russian forces continue to conduct ground attacks of attrition as their primary tactic in the Bakhmut area. And according to the commander of the 127th Territorial Defense Brigade, Roman Grishchenko stated on May 7 that additional Wagner forces had arrived in Bakhmut, which entailed an increase in the intensity of the assaults.

"Grishchenko said that the Ukrainians had not observed any signs that Wagner intended to leave the city and that the intensified shelling probably indicated that Wagner had received more ammunition," analysts noted.

Also on May 8, Russian forces continued limited offensive operations on the Avdeevka-Donetsk front. According to the Ukrainian General Staff, Russian troops conducted unsuccessful offensive operations near Avdeevka, Pervomayskoye (11 km southwest of Avdeevka), and Marinka (27 km southwest of Avdeevka).

Vadim Astafyev, an official representative of the Russian Southern Group of Forces, said that Russian troops repelled a Ukrainian reconnaissance operation with combat near Avdeevka.

"On May 8, Russian troops did not carry out any confirmed ground strikes in the west of the Donetsk region. Alexander Gordeev, a representative of Russia's Eastern Group of Forces, stated that Russian troops repelled a Ukrainian reconnaissance operation with combat in an unspecified location in the west of Donetsk Region," the ISW noted.

As a reminder, it was previously reported that ISW analysts believe that Putin is trying to use the parade in Moscow to demonstrate Russian influence in Central Asia.

The later confirmation of the participation of leaders from the region probably indicates their reluctance to show direct and public support for the war that Russia has unleashed in Ukraine.

In particular, the parade will be attended by Presidents: Kyrgyzstan's Sadyr Zhaparov, Kazakhstan's Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Uzbekistan's Shavkat Mirziyoyev, and Tajikistan's Emomali Rahmon. The participation of the last three from the list became known only on May 8.

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