Putin hails a ‘positive dynamic’ for his troops in Ukraine
15 January 2023 |
2:44 pm
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday praised his forces after their claimed capture of a Ukraine town and in the wake of a missile strike that killed 23 people in a tower block. {ad} The taking of Soledar in eastern Ukraine, a salt-mining outpost home to 10,000 before the conflict, was hailed as a major…
2022 Russian President Vladimir Putin (Photo by Alexander NEMENOV / AFP)
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The taking of Soledar in eastern Ukraine, a salt-mining outpost home to 10,000 before the conflict, was hailed as a major success by Moscow after months of humiliating setbacks on the battlefield.
“There is a positive dynamic, everything is developing according to plans,” Putin said, in an interview broadcasted Sunday. “I hope that our fighters will please us more than once again.”
Russia’s defence ministry announced this week that it had “completed the liberation” of Soledar.
This could be a key gain as Russian forces push towards what has been their main target since October — the nearby transport crossroads of Bakhmut.
Ukraine denied the claims and said heavy fighting continued in Soledar.
On Sunday, the US-based Institute for the Study of War said that “Ukrainian forces are highly unlikely to still hold positions within the settlement of Soledar itself”.
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Both sides have conceded heavy losses in the battle for the town, where Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin insists his forces spearheaded the offensive.
The Russian defence ministry initially made no mention of Wagner when it claimed victory, only later praising the “bravery” of Wagner’s troops in Soledar.
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The nod was an unusual recognition of the controversial force following talk of infighting and rivalry between Wagner and the official military.
Late Saturday, Prigozhin praised his mercenaries in a veiled jab at Russian army command, which has been criticised for poor coordination and being too far removed from the ground.
Prigozhin attributed Wagner’s victories to a “perfected system of command”.
“Everyone can express his opinion,” Prigozhin claimed, “but once a decision has been taken, all tasks are fulfilled. It is our group’s strictest discipline that gives us these possibilities.”
Wagner, which has been accused of abuses in the Central African Republic, Libya, Mali, Syria and Ukraine, has recruited thousands of convicts to fight in Ukraine.
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