Pro-Russian officials in Donetsk asserted that taking control of the city of Soledar would bring a huge advantage to pro-Moscow forces in the region.
In an interview with Solovyov Live TV channel on January 12, Andrey Bayevsky, a lawmaker from the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) and a colonel in the pro-Russian militia in the DPR, affirmed “the pan of fire” Soledar is located in a very important position on the military chessboard in Donetsk.
“Controlling Soledar will allow us to have a very good view of the highway connecting Sloviansk with Bakhmut. Through this, pro-Russian forces can easily shell targets in Bakhmut from this position.” Mr. Bayevsky said.
In addition, Mr. Bayevsky also emphasized the importance of controlling Soledar in isolating the Ukrainian army stronghold of Bakhmut in Donetsk. According to the colonel of the DPR militia, capturing Soledar would help the Russian army “cut off all supply roads leading to Bakhmut and thereby isolate Ukrainian soldiers there from the goods and weapons being transported into the country.” from the outside”.
On the same day, Boris Novikov, commander of Russia’s Troy special forces, said Ukraine is suffering “irreparable” losses on the Soledar front with more than 25,000 troops having been removed from the fighting ring.
“All the hospitals in the Zaporizhia and Dnepropetrovsk regions are full of wounded soldiers, and most of them are sent from the Soledar front,” Novikov revealed.
Extremely intense fighting is taking place in the eastern region of Ukraine, especially on the Bakhmut, Soledar, and Kreminna fronts. The Russian military has in recent days asserted that pro-Russian forces in the region are moving closer to taking control of the city of Soledar in Donetsk.
However, in a statement on January 12, Ukraine’s Security Council Secretary Oleksii Danilov still expressed confidence that Ukrainian soldiers are still resilient in defending against Russian attacks.
Mr. Danilov said that the next three months will be a decisive time for the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.
“The next two to three months will be crucial. Decisive battles will be fought. We are preparing for any eventuality,” the secretary of the Ukrainian Defense Security Council said.
Danilov’s comments came after the decision to replace the commander-in-chief of Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine. According to Danilov, this decision demonstrates the determination of the Russian army to step up the offensive in order to quickly achieve beneficial results in the first half of 2023.
