According to Russian information, the head of Wagner announced on Tuesday that Soledar had been conquered. A group of Ukrainian soldiers was still surrounded in the center of the village. The Kremlin did not officially confirm the entry, but spoke of “positive dynamics”.
“There is a positive dynamic of progress there, but military success will be achieved when we achieve the goals set by the supreme commander in the course of the special military operation,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted as saying on Wednesday. Interfax news. . Tactical successes are still very important.
Kyiv denies
Peskow declined to confirm the taking of Soledar, which the Wagner mercenary troop had reported that night. Instead, he referred to “official statements” coming from the Ministry of Defense in Moscow. At the same time, however, he acknowledged that the progress Russia is currently making on the front lines comes at a “heavy price”. Kyiv, for its part, rejected Soledar’s takeover. “Soledar was, is and always will be Ukrainian,” the Ukrainian army said on Telegram on Wednesday.
Bachmut as the real goal
But the British Ministry of Defense had previously announced that the Russian army and Wagner Group mercenaries would likely have most of Soledar under control after the attacks of the past four days. The city with a population of 10,000 in the industrial region of Donbass is just a few kilometers from Bakhmut.
Russia’s attack on Soledar is likely an attempt to encircle Bakhmut from the north and cut off Ukrainian lines of communication, the UK MoD said at its daily intelligence briefing.
Huge tunnel system
The fighting in Soledar has focused on approaches to abandoned salt mines that run beneath the area and total around 200 kilometers in length. “Both sides are probably concerned that they could be used to advance behind their lines,” he said.
It was precisely with this tunnel system that Wagner’s boss, Prigozhin, recently justified the offensive in the region that had been taking place since the beginning of August last year: “The icing on the cake is the mine system of Soledar and Bakhmut, which in truth is a network of underground cities,” wrote Prigozhin in Telegram.
USA: More economic interests
“It can not only accommodate a large group of people at a depth of 80 to 100 meters, but tanks and armored vehicles can also move in it.” He also claimed that weapons had been stored in the tunnels since World War I. The view is rather dubious. The abandoned tunnels of the salt mine used to be a destination for excursions, concerts were even held in an underground hall, the Luhansk Academic Symphony Orchestra played there under the command of the Austrian conductor Kurt Schmid.
Portal A picture of better times: Salt mine concert 2004
US officials said Prigozhin wanted to take control of the region’s salt and gypsum mines for commercial reasons. The Wagner group had already been accused of uniting military and economic interests in other regions, such as Africa.
debate
Ukraine: what is needed for peace?
Wagner boss puts troops in the spotlight
As early as Monday, Prigozhin stressed that “only” units from his Wagner group would gain ground in Soledar. The US think tank for the Study of War suspects that Prigozhin is using the reports of success – whether confirmed or just fabricated – to promote his group as the only Russian force in Ukraine capable of tangible successes to be achieved. If this thesis is correct, it would also mean that Wagner’s troops play their own game within the Russian army.
Success is mostly symbolic
The Russian military leadership, in turn, could use Bakhmut’s capture, if and whenever it succeeds, as the first military success in a long time for propaganda purposes. And it would be at least a small step towards bringing the entire Donetsk Oblast under Russian control. But there is still the conurbation between Slowjansk and Kramatorsk, which will certainly be defended even more stubbornly by the Ukrainian army.
Aside from a symbolic and psychological success, Bakhmut is of only minor strategic importance to the course of the war, according to international military experts. Even some Russian military bloggers have criticized the fact that it is incomprehensible why high-ranking troops would be used in a battle of attrition that was a sideshow to the war as a whole.
ORF Analysis: Battle for Donetsk
ORF correspondent Christian Wehrschütz reports from Ukraine. He reports the situation in Donzek, where the fighting is particularly concentrated on Bakhmut and Soledar.
big losses
Either way, the losses appear to be huge on both sides. Prigozhin spoke of “heavy and bloody battles” in the battle for Soledar. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also described the situation in Soledar as extremely tense. “It’s very difficult: there are almost no intact walls left there,” Zelenskyy said in his video message late on Tuesday.
“Thanks to the resilience of our soldiers in Soledar, we have gained more time and strength for Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said ahead of the Wagner Group report. The head of state added: “Everything is completely destroyed (…) the land in Soledar is covered with the bodies of the attackers and scarred by the explosions.”
IMAGO/ZUMA Wire Destroyed the factory building in Soledar
The battle for Bachmut continues
The situation in Bachmut is also described as frightening: of the former 70,000 inhabitants, everyone could have fled. Most of the city’s buildings are completely destroyed. However, artillery strikes slightly decreased in December, according to the Ukrainian side. The “Kyiv Independent” speculates that Russia has problems with the supply of ammunition – a problem that also arises for Ukraine.
By capturing Soledar, Russia will likely try to encircle Bakhmut. How long it takes to bring the city fully under Moscow’s control will depend on the Ukrainian defenders. If you rely on a domestic fight, these skirmishes can last for weeks. However, the Ukrainians’ supply lines could easily be cut off, a withdrawal would probably be the safest option.