Moscow statement is first admission that Ukraine is successfully recapturing ground around city
Russia-Ukraine war – latest news updates
Russia’s defence ministry has said some of its troops fell back “to more advantageous defensive positions” near a reservoir north-west of the east Ukrainian city of Bakhmut.
The statement on Friday was the first admission by Moscow that Ukraine was successfully recapturing ground around Bakhmut, a largely destroyed city with a pre-war population of about 70,000 that Russia has been trying to conquer for more than 10 months.