The British Ministry of Defense has published an up-to-date map of hostilities in Ukraine as of Monday, December 19.

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Russian troops continue to advance in the Luhansk and Donetsk directions. Fierce fighting continues in the area of \u200b\u200bthe village of Bakhmut - the occupiers are trying to break through the defenses of the Ukrainian military there. The Armed Forces of Ukraine continue to strike at the accumulation of Russian troops on the left bank of the Kherson and Zaporozhye regions.

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Bakhmut has become the main battlefield in the war, to which Ukraine and Russia alike are sending more and more troops, tanks and artillery.. This concentration of firepower was rare in the 10 months since the start of the Russian invasion..

The Wall Street Journal notes that a retreat from Bakhmut would mean a loss of initiative for Ukraine after four months of steady progress. This could boost Russian morale and make further Ukrainian offensives in Donetsk and neighboring Lugansk regions more difficult..