Video Shows Helicopter Fire Flares Over Intense Bakhmut Battle: Ukraine

A new video captured a Ukrainian helicopter firing flares over Bakhmut as an intense battle continues in the city.

"Bakhmut is for those who have guts. Bakhmut is the city of heroes. We will never surrender. We will win," the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense said in a tweet with the video. The video is taken from a vehicle driving toward the battle and a helicopter can be seen flying in from another area. As the helicopter travels closer to what appears to be a battle, flares are seen from the helicopter.

The video comes as Russian and Ukrainian military forces continue to battle in the city of Bakhmut, which is located in the Donetsk region. Russian President Vladimir Putin previously announced annexation of four Ukrainian regions which included Donetsk as well as Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson. Since his annexation, Ukraine has continued a counteroffensive attack in an attempt to retake control of these regions.

Last week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky traveled to Bakhmut and said that it was "the hottest spot on the entire frontline."

"Since May, the occupiers have been trying to break our Bakhmut, but time goes by and Bakhmut is already breaking not only the Russian Army, but also the Russian mercenaries who came to replace the wasted army of the occupiers," Zelensky said in a televised speech following his visit to the war-torn city.

As fighting has continued in the city, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a U.S.-based think tank, published an assessment of Russia's offensive campaign, which mentioned the battle in Bakhmut.

"Russian forces in Bakhmut may be nearing culmination as Russian forces in Kherson did in August 2022. Russian combat losses are likely forcing the Russian military in the Bakhmut area to use squad-sized assault groups," the ISW said. "The Russian military's rate of advance in the Bakhmut area has recently slowed amidst growing personnel and munitions constraints that will likely prevent it from maintaining a high pace of offensive operations in the area in the near term."

The ISW also said that Russian advancements in Bakhmut will likely decrease in the coming days and weeks "unless significant new reinforcements and supplies of artillery rounds arrive soon."

On Monday, former U.S. General Ben Hodges spoke to the BBC about the ongoing war between the two nations and said that Ukraine currently has the "momentum."

"It's too early to plan a victory parade in Kyiv but all the momentum is with Ukraine now and there is no doubt in my mind that they will win this war, probably in 2023," Hodges said.

Newsweek reached out to the ministry of foreign affairs in Ukraine and Russia for comment.