 Satellite images taken on March 6 show the scale of destruction in Bakhmut as Ukrainian troops fought against the attempted encirclement of the city by Russian forces. Ukraine has decided to fight on in the small eastern city because the battle there is pinning down Russia's best units and degrading them ahead of a planned Ukrainian spring counter-offensive, an aid to President Volodymyr Zelensky set on March 10. Russia has made Bakhmut the main target of a winter offensive involving hundreds of thousands of reservists and mercenaries. It has succeeded in capturing the eastern part of the city and the outskirts to the north and south, but has so far failed to close a ring around Ukrainian forces. At the start of March, Kiev appeared to be planning to withdraw to positions west of the city before announcing at the start of the week that its generals had decided to reinforce its troops in Bakhmut.