Yevgeny Prigozhin, the leader of Russia’s mercenary outfit Wagner, announced late Tuesday (January 10) that his men had taken control of the Ukrainian city of Soledar after a hard battle this week. Wagner, he alleged, has also acquired control of Soledar’s vast salt mines. “Wagner forces seized control of Soledar’s whole area. A cauldron has developed in the heart of the city, where the urban battle is taking place “According to Prigozhin, the news agency Reuters reported on Wednesday, citing local media.
Prigozhin stated that the number of detainees would be announced on Wednesday but provided no other information. Wagner’s chief also tweeted a photograph of himself in military uniform surrounded by the mercenary group’s fighters but did not specify where the photograph was taken, according to AFP.
The degree of Wagner’s authority over Soledar is unknown. Control of the city and its salt mines, on the other hand, would have symbolic, military, and financial value for Russia.
The Ukrainian government has denied that the mercenary group has taken control of Soledar.
The Ukrainian government, on the other hand, has disputed that the mercenary force has taken control of Soledar. “Soledar was, is, and will always be Ukrainian,” the Ukrainian military’s strategic communications section stated in a statement, according to AFP. The branch stated that the images released by Wagner were not taken in Soledar and were taken elsewhere.
Wagner’s claim to control Soledar came only hours after Germany’s foreign minister, Annalena Baerbock, visited Kharkiv in eastern Ukraine. Regional governor Oleg Synegubov took to Telegram to urge Kharkiv citizens to remain in shelters as occupiers bombed again. Since the start of Russia’s offensive in Ukraine in February last year, the city has been heavily bombarded.
According to AFP, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock was the first high-level Western official to visit Kharkiv. Baerbock pledged additional German help for Ukraine, emphasizing that her government will continue to deliver weaponry that Ukraine requires to liberate its compatriots who are currently subject to Russian rule.
The German foreign minister stated that the country would send Ukraine an “additional assistance package” comprising power generators, 20 million euros ($21 million) for demining, and 20 million euros as financial assistance for the Starlink internet access project.