Meanwhile the on-again/off-again relationship between the Russian MoD and Yevgenny Prigozhin and Wagner is on again, and we may be seeing preparation for the Ukrainian offensive:
https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/rus...023-05-07/
Quote:KYIV, May 7 (Reuters) - Russia's Wagner mercenary group appeared on Sunday to ditch plans to withdraw from Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine, saying they had been promised more arms by Moscow and suggesting they may keep up their assault on what Russia sees as a stepping stone to other cities in the Donbas region.
Elsewhere, Ukrainian and Russian media reported explosions across Russian-occupied Crimea, and Russia's defence ministry said its air defences had detected and destroyed 22 Ukrainian drones over the Black Sea overnight.
Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin had said on Friday that his fighters, who have spearheaded a months-long assault on Bakhmut, would pull out after being starved of ammunition and suffering "useless and unjustified" losses as a result.
But in an audio message posted on his Telegram channel on Sunday, he said: "We have been promised as much ammunition and weapons as we need to continue further operations. We have been promised that everything needed to prevent the enemy from cutting us off (from supplies) will be deployed."
[...]
Baza, a Telegram channel with links to Russia's law enforcement agencies, reported that Ukraine sent a series of drones over the peninsula, with Russian air defence shooting down at least one over the port of Sevastopol.
Reuters was not able to independently verify the reports.
Strikes on Russian-held targets have intensified in the past two weeks, especially in Crimea. Ukraine, without confirming any role in those attacks, says destroying enemy infrastructure is preparation for a planned ground assault.
https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/rus...023-05-07/
