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☆ Wagner Group to send Kyiv bodies of soldiers killed in Soledar, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 21 (Reuters) - The private Russian military group Wagner plans to send the bodies of Ukrainian soldiers killed in fighting in the captured town of Soledar to territory held by Ukraine, a website linked to the group's founder Yevgeny Prigozhin reported on Saturday. The RIA FAN website - part of Prigozhin's media holdings - quoted a Wagner commander as saying the mercenary company would send the bodies from Soledar to Ukrainian-held territory in four or five convoys totalling about 20 trucks. Saturday's report did not say how many bodies would be returned to Ukrainian authorities, but said Ukraine's forces had suffered heavy losses in Soledar. It said Prigozhin had made clear that soldiers' bodies should be returned to Ukraine in a "dignified" way, but gave no further details about the planned operation. Ukrainian authorities said during the fight for Soledar that Russian forces sustained heavy losses.

☆ Russia claims capture of Klishchiivka near Ukraine's Bakhmut
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 20 (Reuters) - Russia's Defence Ministry said on Friday that its forces had taken control of Klishchiivka, a settlement south of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine's Donetsk region. Last week, Russian forces captured Soledar to the northeast of Bakhmut - an advance that defence analysts said could help them put pressure on the larger town. Klishchiivka, which had a pre-war population of around 400 people, was captured with the help of aerial support, the ministry said. The village is around six miles (nine km) south of Bakhmut, where units of Russia's Wagner private militia have been locked for months in a battle of attrition with Ukrainian forces. Both Wagner and a Russian proxy militia based in Ukraine's Donetsk province had already claimed to have taken Klishchiivka.

☆ Ukraine expects decisions on tanks at Western defence leaders' meeting
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Tom Balmforth | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

"We are, in fact, now waiting for a decision from one European capital, which will activate the prepared chains of cooperation regarding tanks," Zelenskiy said in a video address on Thursday night. German government sources have said Berlin would move on the Leopard tanks issue if Washington agreed to send Abrams tanks to Ukraine. Ukraine needed the tanks to defend itself, recapture occupied land, and did not plan to attack Russia, Zelenskiy told ARD television on Thursday. "From Washington to London, from Paris to Warsaw, you hear one thing: Ukraine needs tanks. Nearby towns also were shelled by Russian forces - including Klishchiivka, just south of Bakhmut, the Ukrainian military said.

☆ Davos 2023: NATO chief calls for significant boost in arms for Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( John Irish | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 18 (Reuters) - Ukraine needs a "significant increase" in weapons at a pivotal moment in Russia's invasion and such support is the only way to a negotiated peaceful solution, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Wednesday. "This is a pivotal moment in the war and the need for a significant increase in support for Ukraine," Stoltenberg told Reuters in an interview on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. "If we want a negotiated peaceful solution tomorrow we need to provide more weapons today." Beyond tanks, Stoltenberg said Ukraine needed more air defence systems and armour but also ammunition, spare parts and maintenance capabilities to ensure that its existing weapons continued to function. He said the situation along battlefronts had stabilised over the past weeks, but that the protracted fierce fighting in the eastern city of Bakhmut demonstrated the importance of providing more weapons to support Ukraine.

☆ Putin's desperate for a win, and he's throwing troops at some of Ukraine's toughest defenses to get it, former general says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Intense fighting between Ukraine and Russia has been taking place around the eastern city of Bakhmut. Putin has been sending troops into some of Ukraine's most heavily defended areas, a former general said. Mick Ryan argues the Russian leader is trying to get a win before the war's one-year anniversary. Fighting between Ukraine and Russia has intensified in recent weeks around Bakhmut, a city in eastern Ukraine's Donetsk region. Ukrainian soldiers shelter in the woods along a road outside of the strategic city of Bakhmut on January 18, 2023 in Bakhmut, Ukraine.

☆ Wagner chief Prigozhin attacks Putin administration over failure to block YouTube
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Jan 18 (Reuters) - The increasingly prominent head of the Russian private military group Wagner on Wednesday took aim at the Kremlin administration for failing to block the U.S.-owned video sharing platform YouTube. Prigozhin publicly complained of attempts to minimise Wagner's role and belittle its achievements, and the ministry later issued an update praising the "courageous and selfless actions" of Wagner fighters. With around 90 million monthly users in Russia, YouTube, like Google a unit of Alphabet (GOOGL.O), is extremely popular and plays an important role in the digital economy. Though Russia has domestic versions of other social media, a viable YouTube alternative on that scale is yet to emerge. Reporting by Reuters; Writing by Kevin Liffey; Editing by Mark TrevelyanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Former Russian mercenary commander flees to Norway and seeks asylum
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Mithil Aggarwal | Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Caroline-Radnofsky-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

A former member of an infamous Russian mercenary group who fought in Ukraine says he staged a dramatic escape to Norway, where he is seeking asylum and offering to cooperate with international war crimes probes. Medvedev said he had crossed into Norway and surrendered to local police before claiming asylum in the country, which shares an Arctic border with Russia. The former mercenary recounted his defection from his former employer, which he joined last year on a four-month contract after serving time in prison. Medvedev said he climbed through barbed-wire fences, evaded border patrol dogs, ran away from guards' bullets and ran through a forest and over an icy lake to make it into Norway. Norwegian soldiers patrol the border with Russia near Korpfjells, Norway.

☆ Russia to make 'major changes' to armed forces from 2023 to 2026
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 17 (Reuters) - Russia said on Tuesday that it would make "major changes" to its armed forces from 2023 to 2026, promising to shake up its military structure after months of setbacks on the battlefield in Ukraine. In addition to administrative reforms, the Defence Ministry said it would strengthen the combat capabilities of its naval, aerospace and strategic missile forces. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the changes had been made necessary by the "proxy war" being conducted in Ukraine by the West, which has been sending increasingly heavy weaponry to Ukraine to help it resist Russian forces. Last week, Shoigu appointed Army General Valery Gerasimov, the chief of the military general staff, to take charge of the Ukraine campaign. The Defence Ministry said on Friday that it had taken control of Soledar - a small, salt-mining town in Ukraine's Donetsk region that had for weeks been the focus of a Russian assault.

☆ Russian-installed authorities say they are in control of Ukraine's Soledar
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Jan 17 (Reuters) - Russian-installed authorities in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region said on Tuesday they were in control of Soledar, repeating their earlier claim about the salt-mining town where intense fighting has taken place. "On the territory of the Donetsk People's Republic, Russian troops liberated Soledar," they said in a post on Telegram. Russia said on Friday its forces had taken control of Soledar, but Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said later that fighting for Soledar and other eastern towns and cities was continuing. Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Andrew HeavensOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Together with Moscow, Minsk has also been bolstering the drills with weaponry and military equipment. The Belarusian defence ministry said only that "units" of Russia's air forces have been arriving in Belarus. Ukraine's Air Force said the apartment block was struck by a Russian Kh-22 missile, which is known to be inaccurate and that Ukraine lacks the air defences to shoot down. SOLEDARIn Ukraine's eastern Donbas region - the focal point of Russia's drive to capture more territory - Ukraine's forces were battling around the small salt-mining town of Soledar. Russian forces claimed to have taken control of the town, but Ukraine insisted on Sunday that its forces were battling to hold the town, with street fighting raging and Russian forces advancing from various directions.

☆ Russia says Britain's tanks 'will burn' in Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( Guy Faulconbridge | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Britain said on Saturday it would send 14 of its Challenger 2 main battle tanks as well as other advanced artillery support in the coming weeks. "They are using this country [Ukraine] as a tool to achieve their anti-Russian goals," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said when asked about the British tanks. Vladimir Solovyev, a pro-Kremlin presenter on Rossiya 1 state television, said any Western countries which supplied more advanced weapons to Ukraine should be considered legitimate targets for Russia. "De-facto, Britain has entered the war," Solovyev told his flagship Sunday night talk show on state television. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is under pressure to allow the export of Leopard 2 battle tanks to Ukraine by Germany, which makes them, and other countries that have them.

☆ Russia says it launched missile strikes against Ukraine on Saturday
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 15 (Reuters) - Russia's defence ministry said on Sunday its forces had launched a wave of missile strikes against Ukrainian military and infrastructure sites on Saturday. At least 21 people were killed in a strike on a Ukrainian apartment complex in the eastern city of Dnipro in a Russian strike Saturday evening, Ukrainian authorities say. The Russian defence ministry did not mention Dnipro as a specific target of any strikes. Russia also said its troops had made progress towards the city of Bakhmut in Ukraine's Donetsk region, which has been the focus of Russian attacks for months. (This story has been corrected to show Ukrainian apartment complex hit)Reporting by Jake Cordell; editing by Guy FaulconbridgeOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ The Russian missile that wiped out an apartment block was designed to sink aircraft carriers and can't be shot down by Ukraine, says its airforce
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-15 | by ( Bethany Dawson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

At least 23 people were killed in a Russian missile strike on an apartment block in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro. The apartments were hit by a Russian Kh-22 missile which is called an "aircraft carrier killer," said Ukraine. The building was hit by a Russian Kh-22 missile, a Soviet-era anti-ship missile, which Ukraine has described as an "aircraft carrier killer." "This missile with a 950 kg (2,000-pound) warhead, which is called an 'aircraft carrier killer,' is designed to destroy aircraft carrier groups at sea. The Russian missile that Ukraine can't shoot downEmergency personnel work at the site where an apartment block was heavily damaged by a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Dnipro, Ukraine January 15, 2023.

☆ UK to supply tanks as Russian missiles hit across Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

Earlier this month, France said it would send AMX-10 RC armored combat vehicles to Ukraine, designated “light tanks” in French. Sunak’s announcement came as Russian forces fired missiles at Kyiv and other parts of Ukraine on Saturday in the first major barrage in days. In the northeastern Kharkiv region, Gov. On Saturday morning, two Russian missiles hit Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city. But that cuts both ways, as Ukraine says its fierce defense of the eastern strongholds has helped tie up Russian forces.

☆ Victory claims over small Ukrainian town expose rift among Russian forces
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( Leila Sackur | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +1 min

A rare Russian claim of military victory in eastern Ukraine has laid bare a bitter rift between Moscow's military chiefs and the head of a private mercenary group that has been fighting in the region. Two days after Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the Wagner Group, announced that troops from his irregular private army had seized control of the small salt-mining town of Soledar, Russia's Defense Ministry announced victory in a statement Friday that made no mention of the mercenaries. The lack of praise for his group's role in what would be Russia’s largest battlefield success in months drew a sharp response from Prigozhin. The millionaire former restaurateur and ally of President Vladimir Putin claimed victory in Soledar on Wednesday, and the Wagner Group posted a photo that appeared to show Prigozhin with fighters in one of the town's salt mines. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his late-night video address that the battle “continues.”

☆ Drone footage shows Ukrainian forces trapping fighters from Russia's Wagner Group in a lethal crossfire
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( Bethany Dawson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Drone footage shows the Ukrainian troops annihilating a unit of Wagner fighters in Soledar. The video shows soldiers — who the State Border Service of Ukraine identified as Wagner Group fighters — being monitored by a drone. The soldiers then come under fire from Ukrainian fighters using large-caliber machine guns, resulting in a number of injuries, according to the border force. In a Telegram post, the State Border Service of Ukraine described the events. "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."

☆ Take a look inside the incredible 'underground city' carved from salt that Russia and Ukraine are battling over
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Russia's army and the paramilitary Wagner Group have both taken credit for capturing Soledar in Ukraine. Take a look inside the cavernous salt mines, which have previously hosted symphonies and soccer games. Officials in the US have speculated that Russia, particularly the Wagner Group, has aimed to capture the town to gain control of its valuable salt and gypsum resources for financial purposes. Before the war the mined galleries of salt, had been convertor into a magical buried world. Look inside the town's vast salt mines, where Ukraine has previously hosted symphonies, soccer games, the inflation of a hot air balloon, and more.

☆ A dramatic video shows Ukrainian soldiers conducting a medical evacuation of wounded while under fire in bombed-out city
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

A video shows Ukrainian soldiers conducting a medical evacuation in Soledar. The soldiers appeared to be using a US-built M113 armored personnel carrier. A medical evacuation vehicle can be seen speeding towards a building in Soledar amid Russian shelling before stopping around the side of a building. A Twitter user who posted the video noted that the Ukrainian soldiers appeared to be using an M113 armored personnel carrier, primarily supplied by the US. The armored vehicle, weighing 12.3 tonnes, can reach a top speed of 40 mph.

[1/16] Emergency personnel work at the site where an apartment block was heavily damaged by a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Dnipro, Ukraine January 15, 2023. Ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink and Kyiv's other allies condemned Saturday's Russian attacks. "More security assistance is coming to help Ukraine defend itself," Brink said on Twitter, calling the strike on Dnipro "horrifying." In Soledar, where Russian forces have refocused attacks after failing to take the larger nearby centre of Bakhmut, Ukraine insisted that its forces were battling to hold the town. But officials acknowledged the situation was difficult, that street fighting was raging and Russian forces were advancing from various directions.

KYIV, Jan 14 (Reuters) - Russian missile attacks hit critical infrastructure in Kyiv and the eastern city of Kharkiv on Saturday morning, officials said, and the governor of another region warned that a massive missile strike could follow in the coming hours. Russia, which invaded last February, has been pounding Ukraine's vital energy infrastructure with missiles and drones since October, causing sweeping blackouts and disruptions to central heating and running water as winter bites. "Missile attack on critical infrastructure facilities. The attacks hit critical energy infrastructure and industrial facilities in the Kharkiv and Chuhuev district of the region, he said. Residential infrastructure was also hit in the village of Kopyliv in the Kyiv region just outside the capital.

☆ Ukraine forces retain control of Soledar, governor says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A tank fires a round, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Soledar, Donetsk region, Ukraine, in this screen grab released on January 8, 2023 and obtained from a social media video by Reuters on January 10, 2023. State Border Guard Service Of Ukraine/via REUTERS/File PhotoKYIV, Jan 14 (Reuters) - Ukrainian forces are fighting to retain control of Soledar in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region, the regional governor said on Saturday, contradicting Russian claims that Moscow's forces had captured the small town. "Soledar remains under control of our military, though there is street fighting and also fighting outside of the city because the enemy is trying to advance in several directions. Kyrylenko's comments came after Russia said repeatedly that its forces had taken control of the town. He said about 550 residents were still living in Soledar, which had a population of about 10,000 before the war.

☆ Ukraine forces retain control of Soledar despite Russian claims, governor says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A tank fires a round, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Soledar, Donetsk region, Ukraine, in this screen grab released on January 8, 2023 and obtained from a social media video by Reuters on January 10, 2023. State Border Guard Service Of Ukraine/via REUTERS/File PhotoKYIV, Jan 14 (Reuters) - Ukrainian forces are fighting to retain control of Soledar in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region, the regional governor said on Saturday, contradicting Russian claims that Moscow's forces had captured the small town. For days Soledar, a small salt-mining town, has been the focus of a Russian assault. Kyrylenko's comments came after Russia said repeatedly that its forces had taken control of the town. He said about 550 residents were still living in Soledar, which had a population of about 10,000 before the war.

[1/2] Smoke rises from strikes on the frontline city of Soledar, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, as seen from Bakhmut, Ukraine, January 5, 2023. In a video message, Prigozhin described Wagner as a fully independent force with its own aircraft, tanks, rockets and artillery. The short video contained no overt new criticism of the regular army, whose failings Prigozhin has lambasted in the past. Ukraine said on Saturday its forces were fighting to hold onto control of Soledar, contradicting Russian claims to have captured the town. Prigozhin complained on Friday about what he called constant attempts to "steal victory" from Wagner and belittle its achievements.

☆ Giant Ukrainian Salt Mine Takes Center Stage in War
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Alistair Macdonald | Oksana Pyrozhok | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

A giant salt mine has become a focal point on the most fiercely contested front line in Ukraine, as Russia’s Wagner paramilitary group sets its sights on taking what it sees as a military and economic asset. Russia has said it has captured the eastern town of Soledar, where the mine is located, though Ukraine says the settlement remains contested. While the mine’s owner doubts it has military value, the operation could be a lucrative one. The salt mine could have economic value if Wagner can consolidate its hold there. Russia has seized key economic assets in the parts of Ukraine that it occupies, echoing Wagner’s use of military muscle in Africa to take control of mines.

☆ Moscow Says It Has Seized Ukrainian Town of Soledar
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Ian Lovett | Evan Gershkovich | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Russia’s Defense Ministry said Moscow’s forces had completed the capture of Soledar overnight, as Ukrainian officials said battles were continuing for control of the eastern town. In its operational briefing on Friday, the ministry said Russian forces were able to capture Soledar after constantly bombarding Ukrainian positions. Russian forces spearheaded by Wagner Group, a private paramilitary organization, had advanced into Soledar in recent days after shifting their firepower there following months of failed attempts to seize the nearby city of Bakhmut.

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