Russia and Ukraine Can’t Agree on Who Controls Soledar – Soledar, a town in Donetsk Oblast that lies just 11 miles from the embattled city of Bakhmut, has seen increased Russian aggression in recent weeks.
(Subscribe to Our YouTube Channel Here. 19FortyFive publishes original videos every day.)
The town, defended by Ukrainian forces, could ultimately prove a stepping stone for Russian forces looking to finally take control of Bakhmut city following months of fighting that has left the region in a state of complete disrepair.
On Friday, Russia claimed that its forces had taken control of the town after weeks of intense fighting, giving the Kremlin its first major victory in several months.
“The liberation of the town of Soledar was completed in the evening of Jan. 12,” Lt. Gen. Igor Konashenkov, the spokesman for the Russian Ministry of Defense claimed on Friday.
Konashenkov also stressed the importance of the development, saying that it will prove valuable for the “continuation of offensive operations in the Donetsk region.”
Not only would capturing Soledar give Russian troops a stepping stone to conquer Bakhmut, but it could also put some momentum back into the Russian invasion and give Putin something to show for almost a year of fighting.
Capturing Soledar, however, does not necessarily mean that Russia will be capable of taking control of Bakhmut – and Ukraine even says that the claims are untrue.
Ukraine Says It’s Not True
Ukrainian military officials have denied Russia’s claims, with Sergiy Cherevaty, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the eastern regions, telling French media that fighting was continuing in Soledar.
Cherevaty said that Ukrainian forces are still managing to keep the situation “under control in difficult conditions.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the same, too. In a message posted on his Telegram channel, the president said that Russian forces had not successfully taken control of Soledar and praised soldiers “both on the front lines and all our other fronts.”
“Although the enemy has concentrated its greatest forces in this direction, our troops – the Armed Forces of Ukraine, all defense and security forces – are defending the state. I thank every soldier, sergeant, officer of brigades and other army units who are bravely and staunchly performing their tasks,” he also said.
Members of the Ukrainian 46th Air Assault Brigade also said On Friday evening that they were “hanging on” but stressed that the situation was serious.
“We’re hanging on. But we are being surrounded. Heavy fighting continues inside the city,” a post read, adding that Russians were “able to cut off those who were near the railway station and Mine 7 and are making efforts to consolidate the encirclement.”
If Ukraine is right, it’s still not good news, and all communication from Ukrainian officials seems to suggest the situation is dire.
Jack Buckby is 19FortyFive’s Breaking News Editor. He is a British author, counter-extremism researcher, and journalist based in New York. Reporting on the U.K., Europe, and the U.S., he works to analyze and understand left-wing and right-wing radicalization, and reports on Western governments’ approaches to the pressing issues of today. His books and research papers explore these themes and propose pragmatic solutions to our increasingly polarized society.
