Putin’s hollow win. Pulverized city gains him nothing

The pyhrric victory is emblematic of Putin's vainglorious campaign — a willingness to sacrifice untol lives in an impossible quest to reclaim a long-gone empire

May 24, 2023 - 3:48 PM

Little remains of the 400-year-old city of Bakhmut, Ukraine after nine months of Russian shelling. Over the weekend Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed he had “liberated” the city. (AP Photo/Libkos, File)

It’s more than semantics for Russia’s Vladimir Putin to say he has “captured” the city of Bakhmut in Ukraine when in fact it has been wiped off the face of the Earth.

Nothing remains of the 400-year-old city of 71,000.

Capturing implies taking control.

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