Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Monday his troops are fighting back “new, even more violent attacks” in Soledar near Bakhmout, a town in eastern Ukraine that Moscow has been attempting to seize for months.
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“I thank all our soldiers who protect Bakhmout (…) and the fighters in Soledar who withstand new, even more violent attacks from the invaders,” President Zelensky said in his daily message.
Soledar in the Donetsk region is about 15 kilometers from Bakhmout, a town that had a population of about 70,000 before the Russian offensive began last February and is now the epicenter of the fighting.
“Thanks to the resistance of our soldiers there in Soledar, we gained additional time and (received) forces for Ukraine,” said Zelenskyy.
“Everything is completely destroyed (…) The whole area of Soledar is covered with the corpses of the invaders and bears the scars of the explosions. This is what madness looks like,” added the Ukrainian President.
Earlier in the day, Ukrainian forces said they repelled an attempt to take Soledar, then fighting resumed.
“After an unsuccessful attempt by the enemy to capture Soledar (…the Russians), they regrouped, restored manpower, moved additional assault units, changed tactics and launched attacks,” Deputy Defense Minister Ganna Malyar said in a telegram message.
“At present, the enemy has deployed a large number of assault units formed from the best reserves of the Wagner group. They are literally stepping on the corpses of their own soldiers,” she added.
In a press release, the head of the Wagner group, Evguéni Prigojine, asserted that the attack on Soledar was carried out “exclusively” by members of his organization.
Even earlier, pro-Russian separatists in the Donetsk region claimed control of the village of Bachmoutské, a few kilometers from Soledar.
In September, Moscow announced that it had annexed four Ukrainian territories in the east, including the Donetsk region, following referenda that were not recognized by Kyiv and Western countries.