Russian troops may have taken Soledar, ISW admits

At the same time, ISW experts believe that “the possible capture of Soledar on January 11 is not an operationally important development of the situation – and hardly indicates an imminent encirclement of Bahmut”.

The ISW report notes that on Thursday, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported repelling Russian attacks in the village of Sola, located about a kilometer northwest of Soledar. However, unlike in previous days, the Ukrainian army did not report that it managed to repel the attack in Soledar itself.

At the same time, Russian sources wrote that the Russian army was completing the cleanup of Soledar, and military bloggers published footage on Telegram channels showing fighters from the Wagner mercenary group walking through the city’s streets.

“All available evidence shows that Ukrainian forces no longer maintain an organized defense in Soledar,” ISW experts conclude.

But at the same time, they point out that “as a result of Russia’s information operations, Soledar’s importance is exaggerated” and call its capture “at best a tactical Pyrrhic victory for Russia.”

“ISW continues to believe that the capture of Soledar – a settlement of approximately 14.2 square kilometers – will prevent Russian forces from gaining control of Ukraine’s critical lines of communication with Bakhmut – and will not put them in a better position to encircle the city in the short term,” the statement said.

ISW experts say that the Russian army “may have succeeded in capturing Soledar, diverting significant resources to a tactical success that has weakened it”.

“Russian forces may try to maintain a high tempo of attacks in the Bakhmut district, but these efforts will not yield operationally significant results, as they have lost combat capabilities and are depleted,” the ISW report said.