The leader of the Russian mercenary group Wagner claimed on Sunday that forces under his control had taken a village a few kilometers from the essential city of Bakhmut, which Moscow has been attempting to record for months.
Today, Wagners attack units took the town of Krasna Hora, Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin stated in a declaration on Sunday.The Ukrainian authorities have actually not yet talked about these allegations.
AFP was not able to individually confirm the claims.Experts have discussed the strategic importance of Bakhmut, but the city has turned into a key political and symbolic reward as the battle has dragged on.Rivalries in between the paramilitary Wagner group and the Russian army have emerged during the defend Bakhmut-- though the Kremlin rejects any rift.On Jan.
11, Prigozhin claimed his fighters had taken control of the city of Soledar, a salt-mining town with a pre-war population of around 10,000 near Bakhmut.The Russian Defense Ministry only verified that Moscows forces were in control of the town 2 days later.
After the capture of Soledar and the mass hype stating that there were other [soldiers] Wagner in Soledar, of course, the people were really disappointed, Prigozhin said Sunday.
Within a 50 kilometers radius, basically, only Wagner fighters remain, and they will take Bakhmut, he included.