Russia steps up a powerful assault on Soledar town in eastern Ukraine as fighting rages on in the Donbass region on the 320th day since the start of the deadly conflict.
Tuesday, January 10, 2023
Russian and Wagner forces are probably in control of most of the small town of Soledar in eastern Ukraine after tactical advances in the last four days, the British defence ministry has said in a regular intelligence update.
Officials in Kiev have said Moscow stepped up a powerful assault on Soledar in the industrial Donbass region, forcing Ukrainian troops to repel waves of attacks led by the Wagner contract militia around the salt mining town and nearby fronts.
Soledar is a few miles from Bakhmut, where troops of both sides have suffered heavy losses in some of the most intense trench warfare since Russia invaded Ukraine nearly 11 months ago.
"Russia’s Soledar axis is highly likely an effort to envelop Bakhmut from the north, and to disrupt Ukrainian lines of communication," Britain added in its intelligence update.
Zelenskyy: Resilience of our forces in Soledar has helped Ukraine win time
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said the resilience of Ukraine's forces fighting off waves of attacks in the eastern region of Donbass had helped the country win time and gain strength.
"Thanks to the resilience of our soldiers in Soledar, we have won for Ukraine additional time and additional strength for Ukraine," Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address.
Ukrainian military reports say the country's troops are withstanding heavy attacks by Russian forces redeployed in Soledar after failing to take the larger nearby town of Bakhmut.
Zelenskyy did not spell out what he meant by gaining time and strength, but Ukrainian officials and senior officers have warned that Russia is planning a new major offensive in the coming months.
Polish leaders meet, discuss further support for Ukraine
Poland's President Andrzej Duda with the prime minister and some of his ministers to discuss security issues amid the war in neighbouring Ukraine, including Kiev's request for delivery of Western-made heavy battle tanks.
After the meeting, top national security official Jacek Siewiera said decisions were taken as to current and future support to Ukraine but did not provide any details.
Earlier, a presidential aide said that Kiev’s request for German-made Leopard 2 tanks which Poland, among other countries, uses, would be on the agenda.
Russia launches criminal probes
Russia's Investigative Committee said in a statement that its chief Alexander Bastrykin ordered the launch of a criminal case against Russian film and theatre actor Artur Smolyaninov, who left the country after Moscow's forces attacked Ukraine and repeatedly spoke out against the war.
According to the statement, Smolyaninov "made a series of statements directed against Russia in an interview with a Western media outlet." The Investigative Committee didn't clarify which of Smolyaninov's actions constituted a criminal offence and what charges it would bring against him.
Source: TRTWorld and agencie
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(With input from news agency language)
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