<p>The head of Russia's Wagner mercenary group said on Monday his fighters would leave Bakhmut by June 1 and transfer control to the Russian army, after claiming to have fully captured the city.</p>.<p>Both Wagner and the regular Russian army have said Bakhmut had fallen to them but Kyiv denies this, saying it is hanging on to a corner of the eastern Ukrainian city and that battles are ongoing.</p>.<p>"Wagner will leave Artemovsk from May 25 to June 1," Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin said in an audio recording on Telegram.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/international/world-news-politics/kyiv-says-ukrainian-troops-advance-around-bakhmut-russia-adding-forces-1221011.html" target="_blank">Kyiv says Ukrainian troops advance around Bakhmut, Russia adding forces</a></strong></p>.<p>Bakhmut was previously known as Artemovsk, in honour of a Soviet revolutionary, before Ukraine renamed it.</p>.<p>Prigozhin said the mercenaries had set up "defence lines" on the western outskirts of the city before a planned transfer of control to the Russian army.</p>.<p>"If the ministry of defence does not have enough personnel, we have thousands of generals," said Prigozhin, who has been embroiled in an increasingly public spat with the Russian military leadership.</p>.<p>Prigozhin has poured scathing criticism on Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and army chief of staff Valery Gerasimov, accusing them of being incompetent and causing Moscow's large-scale losses in the conflict in Ukraine.</p>.<p>Wagner fighters have spearheaded Russia's storming of Bakhmut and Prigozhin's influence has risen hugely during Moscow's Ukraine offensive.</p>.<p>On Saturday, he announced that Bakhmut had fallen to his fighters, speaking in a video against the backdrop of the ruined city.</p>.<p>He said then that Wagner fighters would pull out by May 25.</p>.<p>Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Wagner and the Russian army on the alleged conquest.</p>.<p>But Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said at the G7 summit on Sunday that Bakhmut was "not occupied" by Russia.</p>
<p>The head of Russia's Wagner mercenary group said on Monday his fighters would leave Bakhmut by June 1 and transfer control to the Russian army, after claiming to have fully captured the city.</p>.<p>Both Wagner and the regular Russian army have said Bakhmut had fallen to them but Kyiv denies this, saying it is hanging on to a corner of the eastern Ukrainian city and that battles are ongoing.</p>.<p>"Wagner will leave Artemovsk from May 25 to June 1," Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin said in an audio recording on Telegram.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/international/world-news-politics/kyiv-says-ukrainian-troops-advance-around-bakhmut-russia-adding-forces-1221011.html" target="_blank">Kyiv says Ukrainian troops advance around Bakhmut, Russia adding forces</a></strong></p>.<p>Bakhmut was previously known as Artemovsk, in honour of a Soviet revolutionary, before Ukraine renamed it.</p>.<p>Prigozhin said the mercenaries had set up "defence lines" on the western outskirts of the city before a planned transfer of control to the Russian army.</p>.<p>"If the ministry of defence does not have enough personnel, we have thousands of generals," said Prigozhin, who has been embroiled in an increasingly public spat with the Russian military leadership.</p>.<p>Prigozhin has poured scathing criticism on Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and army chief of staff Valery Gerasimov, accusing them of being incompetent and causing Moscow's large-scale losses in the conflict in Ukraine.</p>.<p>Wagner fighters have spearheaded Russia's storming of Bakhmut and Prigozhin's influence has risen hugely during Moscow's Ukraine offensive.</p>.<p>On Saturday, he announced that Bakhmut had fallen to his fighters, speaking in a video against the backdrop of the ruined city.</p>.<p>He said then that Wagner fighters would pull out by May 25.</p>.<p>Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Wagner and the Russian army on the alleged conquest.</p>.<p>But Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said at the G7 summit on Sunday that Bakhmut was "not occupied" by Russia.</p>