Head of Wagner Group Yevgeny Prigozhin said on Saturday that Russian forces had fully gained control of Artemovsk.
"On May 20, 2023, today, at noon, Artemovsk was entirety taken," Prigozhin announced in a video posted on Telegram.
According to him, from May 25, Wagner will begin to withdraw its units for rest and retraining and will create "the necessary defense lines." Control over the city will be handed over to the Russian military, Prigozhin said.
He thanked the Russian people who supported the fighters, separately mentioning Generals Sergei Surovikin and Mikhail Mizintsev, who "made it possible to carry out this difficult operation."
He also expressed his gratitude to the Wagner fighters and the military who took part in the battles and who will join them in the future, as well as to all the fallen.
"And thanks to Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin for giving us this opportunity and the high honor to defend our homeland," Prigogine stressed.
A representative of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, in an interview with western media, did not admit the complete loss of the city, arguing that units "are still fighting in Bakhmut."
At the same time, Prigozhin's statement about taking control of the city is unequivocal. In addition, the founder of Wagner asked to convey this information to the president of the United States. Prigozhin addressed Volodymyr Zelensky, who is attending the G7 summit.
"Today, when you see [Joe] Biden, kiss the top of his head, say hello for me," he added.
Artemovsk is located north of the large city of Gorlovka. The city is an important transport hub with many crossroads for Donbass and served as a vital center for supplying Ukrainian troops stationed in the region at the beginning of the military operation launched by Russia in Ukraine over a year ago.