Russia said on Friday that its forces had taken control of Soledar in eastern Ukraine, in what would be a rare success for Moscow after months of battlefield reverses, but Kyiv said its troops were still fighting in the town.
Reuters could not immediately verify the situation in Soledar, a small salt-mining town that has for days been theKyiv and the West have played down the town's significance, saying Moscow sacrificed wave upon wave of soldiers and mercenaries in a pointless fight for a bombed-out wasteland, unlikely to affect the wider war except insofar as the huge losses have sapped manpower on both sides.
"The situation in Soledar is near critical — the city is semi-encircled. Only one road is left to supply our troops," said Oleh Zhdanov, a military analyst based in Kyiv. "The difficult battle for the Donetsk region continues. The battle for Bakhmut and Soledar, for Kreminna, for other cities and villages in the east of our country continues," Zelensky said.
After Ukrainian forces drove Russia into humiliating retreats for much of the second half of 2022, the front lines have barely moved for the past two months. Meanwhile, the battles around Bakhmut and Soledar became what both sides called a "meat grinder" — a brutal war of attrition claiming the lives of thousands of soldiers.
Within Russia, victory in Soledar could boost ultra-nationalist mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin, whose Wagner Group of fighters-for-hire, including convicts recruited from prison with promises of pardons, has focused on the fight in that area. He has griped as the regular military has taken credit for the Soledar battle without mentioning his fighters.
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Russia claims capture of Ukraine's Soledar; Kyiv says fighting goes on(1st UPDATE) In a video address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy thanks two units in Soledar that he says 'are holding their positions and inflicting significant losses on the enemy'
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Ukraine says its forces hold out against Russia in battle for SoledarIn a video address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy thanks two units in Soledar that he says 'are holding their positions and inflicting significant losses on the enemy.'
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Russia says it controls battered Ukraine town of SoledarRussia said Friday its forces had wrested control of the war-scarred town of Soledar in east Ukraine, Moscow’s first claim of victory in months of battlefield setbacks.
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Ukrainian forces holding out after ‘hot’ night in Soledar – KyivKYIV — Ukrainian forces were holding out on Friday after a "hot" night of battles in the eastern salt-mining town of Soledar, Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar said. "The night
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Ukraine says troops hold out in corpse-strewn battlefield of Soledar(1st UPDATE) The ultra-nationalist contract militia Wagner, run by an ally of President Vladimir Putin outside the main chain of military command, claims to have taken Soledar after intense fighting that it says had left the town strewn with Ukrainian dead
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