Russia intensifies fighting to seize the Ukrainian city of Soledar

The forces of Ukraine They face waves of assaults by Russian forces in the small salt-producing town of Soledar, kyiv officials said Tuesday, as Moscow strives to make its first advance east in months.

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The British Ministry of Defense stated that Russian troops and mercenaries from the Wagner group probably now control most of the city after the advances of the last four days.

There, troops on both sides have suffered heavy losses in one of the most intense trench warfare since Russia invaded Ukraine almost 11 months ago.

Bakhmut lies on a strategic supply line between the Donetsk and Lugansk regions, which form the Donbass, the industrial heart of Ukraine. Taking control of Bakhmut could give Russia a platform to advance on two largest cities: Kramatorsk and Sloviansk.

I would also give Russia a welcome victory on the battlefield after a series of setbacks in recent months.

“It is very probable that the axis solder of Russia be an effort to envelop Bakhmut from the north and disrupt Ukrainian lines of communication,” the British intelligence report states.

Serhiy Cherevaty, a spokesman for the Ukrainian Eastern Forces, said the Russians were deploying their best Wagner fighters in solderwhich had received 86 artillery hits in the last 24 hours.

Russia he was using World War I-style tactics, throwing large numbers of men into battle and absorbing heavy losses, he told Ukrainian television.

“Basically, it’s not a 21st century war,” he said.

Journalist Yuriy Butusov, who is part of the Ukrainian troops in Soledar, wrote for the online outlet New Voice that Russian forces had established a control fire on the main Ukrainian supply route to the city.

“This is not a complete encirclement, but normal supply along the route is impossible, (and) this is critical for the defense,” he said.

Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskysaid in his late-night video address on Monday that Bakhmut and Soledar were holding out despite widespread destruction.

He cited new and more ferocious attacks on solderwhere he said that no wall was left standing and the ground was littered with Russian corpses.

The Russian Defense Ministry did not mention solder nor Bakhmut at a press conference on Monday.

waves of attacks

The Wagner group was founded by Yevgeny Prigozhin, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin. With some recruits drawn from Russian prisons, he is active in conflicts in Africa and has played a leading role in Russia’s war effort in Ukraine.

Prigozhin said Saturday that the importance of the area lies in a network of cavernous mining tunnels underground that can house troops or tanks.

Ukrainian military analyst Oleh Zhdanov called the fighting in Bahkmut and Soledar “the most intense on the entire front.”

“There are so many left on the battlefield… dead or wounded,” he said on YouTube. “They attack our positions in waves, but the wounded, as a rule, die where they lie, either from exposure, as it is very cold, or from loss of blood.”

Reuters was unable to verify the reports on the battlefield.

At a Kramatorsk evacuation center, Olha, 60, said she had fled Soledar after moving from apartment to apartment as each one was destroyed in tank battles.

“Not a single house remains intact. The apartments were burning, they were splitting in half,” said Olha, who gave only his first name.

The Ukrainian authorities, led by Commander-in-Chief General Valery Zaluzhniy, have warned that Russia it is preparing fresh troops for a new offensive on the Ukraine, possibly on the capital, kyiv.

Zelensky has repeatedly urged Western supporters of Ukraine to be supplied with more sophisticated weapons to help repel attacks and eventually drive out the Russian troops.

“The world knows that every day of Russian presence on Ukrainian soil means deaths, injuries, pain and suffering of the people,” he wrote in a Telegram message on Tuesday morning, under images of Ukrainian soldiers.

“Ukraine must get everything necessary to expel terrorists from our land and reliably protect our people from any Russian escalation plans.”

British Prime Minister’s spokesman Rishi Sunak said London had not yet made a final decision on sending tanks to Ukraine. The spokesman said Britain would continue to coordinate support with allies after Germany, France and the United States indicated last week they would provide armored vehicles.

Source: Elcomercio

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I am Jack Morton and I work in 24 News Recorder. I mostly cover world news and I have also authored 24 news recorder. I find this work highly interesting and it allows me to keep up with current events happening around the world.