Ukrainian soldiers prepare to fire a round from a Russian tank 2C23 Nona-SVK self-propelled mortar system in Bakhmut. Reuters

Russian forces have repeatedly launched attacks against Bakhmut and nearby Avdiivka in the Donetsk region but are being pushed back with what Kyiv says are heavy losses.

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"Last week there was very intense fighting ... there are a lot of them (Russians), both people and equipment," said a soldier who gave his name only as Moriak, the Ukrainian word for sailor.

Reuters journalists saw a captured Russian T-80 tank and a 2S23 Nona SVK self-propelled mortar, now controlled by Ukrainian crews, firing at targets outside Bakhmut.

A Ukrainian soldier gears up for an assault in the Donbas region. Reuters

Ukraine's military says both were seized in March and took months to be refitted. The eight-wheel Nona — commanded by Moriak — has a 120 mm mortar capable of firing a maximum of 10 rounds per minute.

"They left us this gift, and it has high, very high (precision), and it now works against them, it helps us push them away," he said.

Bakhmut has been an important target for Russia's armed forces in a slow advance through the Donetsk region since Russia took the industrial towns of Lysychansk and Sievierodonetsk in June and July.

Britain's defence ministry says the Wagner Group private military company "likely remains" heavily involved in the Bakhmut fighting. Wagner, staffed by veterans of the Russian armed forces, was founded in 2014 after Russia annexed Crimea and started providing support to pro-Russia separatists.

Reuters