UKRAINE: THE SITUATION 448 - MAY 15, 2023

Leaked US information that the "Washington Post" has access to suggests that the financier of the Wagner Group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, offered the Ukrainian intelligence service to disclose the locations of Russian positions in exchange for Bakhmut.

The newspaper reported on May 15 that Prigoschin offered information about Russian troop positions to the Ukrainian Main Directorate of Military Intelligence (GUR) in exchange for a Ukrainian withdrawal from Bakhmut. Two unnamed Ukrainian officials confirmed that Prigoschin had spoken with GUR officials on numerous occasions. Reportedly, GUR officials rejected Prigoschin's offer because they did not trust him, and some documents suggest that Kyiv suspects the Kremlin is aware of Prigoschin's communication with the Ukrainian intelligence service. The "Washington Post" reported that Prigoschin urged Ukrainian officials to attack Russian forces and revealed problems facing the Russian forces related to morale and ammunition supplies. On May 13, the US newspaper published an interview with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky about GUR Chief Major General Kyrylo Budanov's contacts with Prigoschin and his agents in Africa, in which Zelensky did not confirm Ukraine's contacts with Prigoschin.

Ukrainian officials confirmed limited Ukrainian successes on the battlefield during recent local counterattacks in and around Bakhmut.

The Russian Ministry of Defense claims to have intercepted a Ukrainian Storm Shadow missile for the first time on May 15.

The complete Russian Offensive Update 448 is available directly from UNDERSTANDING WAR.

UNDERSTANDING WAR online