Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Monday that his troops were resisting “new, even more violent attacks” in Soledar, near Bakhmout, a city in eastern Ukraine which Moscow has been trying for months to seize.
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“I thank all our soldiers who protect Bakhmout (…) and the fighters in Soledar, who resist new, even more violent attacks from the invaders,” President Zelensky said in his daily message.
Soledar, in the Donetsk region, is some 15 kilometers from Bakhmout, a town that had around 70,000 inhabitants before the start of the Russian offensive last February, and which is now the epicenter of the fighting.
“Thanks to the resistance of our soldiers there, in Soledar, we gained extra time and (preserved) forces for Ukraine,” said Zelensky.
“Everything is completely destroyed (…) The entire territory 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, the Ukrainian armed forces said they had repelled an attempt to take Soledar, then that fighting had resumed.
“After an unsuccessful attempt by the enemy to capture Soledar (…the Russians) regrouped, recovered manpower, transferred additional assault units, changed tactics and launched assaults,” the deputy said. Defense Minister Ganna Malyar on Telegram messaging.
“Currently, 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, affirmed for his part that the assault on Soledar was “exclusively” carried out by members of his organization.
Earlier still, pro-Russian separatists in the Donetsk region claimed to have taken control of the village of Bakhmoutské, a few kilometers from Soledar.
In September, Moscow announced that it had annexed four Ukrainian territories in the east, including the Donetsk region, following referendums not recognized by kyiv and Western countries.
