Day 321 of the Invasion of Ukraine: Wagner claims Soledar, Zelensky describes it as Covered with Corpses of the Invaders (UPDATED)

Ukraine | January 10, 2023, Tuesday // 11:58|  views

Soledar

Here are the highlights of events related to the war in Ukraine over the past 24 hours:

The Pentagon ordered "Vampires" for Ukraine. It will deliver 14 anti-drone systems

The Pentagon awarded L3Harris Technologies a $40 million order to manufacture anti-drone systems "Vampire" that will be sent to Ukraine by the middle of the year, the company announced on Monday, as cited by the "Defense News" portal.

L3Harris announced that they will install 14 kits on vehicles that the US government is providing to Ukraine. The "Vampire" consists of a laser-guided missile launcher that can be quickly installed in a civilian truck.

The kits will allow Ukraine's ground forces to strike both ground targets and drones and unmanned aerial vehicles that Russia uses to strike Ukrainian civilian infrastructure.

L3Harris added that the Pentagon contract calls for the company to deliver four systems to the Department of Defense by mid-2023 and 10 more by the end of 2023.

Designed by the US Department of Defense, Vampire will turn Ukrainian pickup trucks into deadly missile launchers. The kits are part of a nearly $3 billion package for Ukraine that the US announced last Wednesday.

The Vampire prototype, presented to the Defense Department in April, was selected in August as part of the Pentagon's $3 billion Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative package. The manufacturing company said it began field testing the systems in 2021 and continued range and endurance testing in the summer of 2022.

"We have invested in shipping, testing and certification since August so that production of 'Vampire' can begin immediately," said Luke Savoy, manager at L3Harris.

Rehabilitation: Russia returns to command the general who did not capture Kyiv and surrender Lyman

Colonel-General Alexander Lapin has been appointed chief of the General Staff of the Ground Forces of the Russian Army, RBC reported citing its sources in the Ministry of Defense. The news was confirmed by the former commander-in-chief of the Ground Forces until 2010, and now an analyst and inspector general of the army, army general Vladimir Boldirev. "They have already appointed him," Boldyrev was quoted as saying by URA.ru.

The appointment took place on January 9. According to Boldyrev, in his new position, Lapin will deal with planning, mobilization issues and territorial defense. The most basic task here is the planning of the use of the Ground Forces, and the second major responsibility is the preparation of the military districts. Lapin will be the first deputy of the commander-in-chief of the Ground Forces, the general with a marshal's star - army general Oleg Salyukov, included in the sanctions lists of the EU, Great Britain, Canada, Switzerland, Australia, Japan, Ukraine and New Zealand.

Lapin was the head of the "Center" troop group and led the blitzkrieg against the capital, Kyiv. Under his command at that time were the divisions of the Central Military District and the Western Military District. The offensive then failed, but it was not the only and last failure for Lapin.

After the "regrouping" announced by Moscow, the Russian army announced that it was withdrawing from the occupied positions. Subsequently, the general led the defense of Krasniy Lyman. After the capture of the city by the VSU in October, the general was criticized by the Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov and the founder of PMC "Wagner" Yevgeny Prigozhin. Kadyrov called the senior military incompetent and declared him the main culprit for the defeat in Krasniy Lyman.

"It's not that Lapin is untalented that's insulting. And the fact that it is being covered up by the leaders in the General Staff. If it were up to me, I would make Lapin a private, I would deprive him of all awards and with a machine gun in his hands I would send him to the front line with blood to wash away his shame," Kadyrov said at the time.

Last year, the BBC told the story of General Lapin, whose son also fought in the war and received an award for courage and bravery during the failed offensive of the Russian army at Torby and Chernihiv. On July 4, the general himself received the title "Hero of Russia".

At the end of October, because of the defeats and to appease the inner circles of influence in the army, Alexander Lapin was removed from the position of commander of the group of troops "Center". His current appointment makes him the No. 2 commander in the Russian ground forces after Commander-in-Chief Salyukov.

The Czech Prime Minister personally signed a tank sent to Ukraine

The Prime Minister of the Czech Republic, Petr Fiala, personally signed the cannon of a modernized T-72 tank that his country sent in military aid to Ukraine and shared the photo on Twitter."To the brave defenders of Ukraine," Fiala wrote.

"I wrote a short message to the brave Ukrainian defenders on the T-72 tank that will go to Ukraine. I believe that the Ukrainians will win in their fight against the Russian aggressor," explained Fiala on the social network.

The Czech Republic, along with Slovakia and Poland, is among the NATO countries that supply Ukraine with tanks from their reserves of military equipment dating back to the Warsaw Pact. They are gradually replacing it with an analogous NATO standard.

Ukraine can use this technique immediately, as it is the same with which its army is armed, and the Ukrainian military does not need additional training to use it.

However, Kyiv has long insisted that in order to expel the Russian occupiers it needs Western tanks and aircraft, which the major NATO countries still refrain from sending, arguing mainly with technical obstacles.

In an apparent reversal of that policy, however, last week France, the United States and Germany promised Ukraine dozens of armored infantry fighting vehicles capable of destroying tanks.

There have also been media reports that these countries are also considering the possibility of providing Ukraine with Western-made tanks.

Bulgaria decided to send military aid to Ukraine ten months after the start of the war. The Ministry of Defense has made it clear that it will mainly include ammunition, but not armored vehicles, the main argument for this being not to disrupt the country's defense capabilities.

However, a number of military experts believe that if it helps Ukraine with its aging Soviet-type weaponry, Bulgaria can quickly and affordably replace it with western ones using the mechanisms created in the EU and NATO.

At the same time, today the Russian Ministry of Defense announced the new combat equipment that the Russian armed forces are expected to receive this year, TASS reported. It includes the increase in the supply of hypersonic missile complexes "Kinzhal" and "Zirkon", four submarines and 12 surface ships, 22 launchers with intercontinental ballistic missiles "Yars", "Sarmat" and "Avangard", one submarine cruiser of the Borei project - A", three Tu-160 strategic bombers.

Heavy fighting continues near Bakhmut, eastern Ukraine

Heavy fighting continues in the area of the eastern Ukrainian city of Soledar in the Donetsk region, located about 15 kilometers from Bakhmut. Russian forces carry out attacks in small groups, the Ukrainian command reports.

The Russian invaders attack the Ukrainian positions in Soledar in "waves". The situation is extremely difficult, said Taras Berezovets from the Ground Forces of Ukraine, quoted by the UNIAN agency. According to him, the forces of Moscow carry out attacks in groups of 8 people, armed with rifles or hand-held anti-tank grenade launchers.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukrainian troops were withstanding "new and even heavier attacks" on Soledar, near the eastern town of Bakhmut, which Moscow has been trying to capture for months.

"Thanks to all our soldiers who defend our Bakhmut and to all the fighters in Soledar who resist the new and even tougher attacks from the invaders! Thanks to the endurance of our soldiers there in Soledar, we gained additional time. Everything is completely destroyed... the entire land in Soledar is covered with corpses of invaders and is scarred by explosions,” said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in his evening address.

Yesterday, Ukrainian armed forces said they had repelled an attempt to take Soledar, but fighting has resumed. Ukraine's Deputy Defense Minister Anna Malyar said that after a failed attempt to capture Soledar and retreat, the Russian invaders launched a powerful assault on the city.

And Russian-backed separatist forces in the Donetsk region said they had captured the village of Bakhmutske, just a few kilometers from Soledar.

Wagner's units are using new tactics and more fighters under heavy artillery cover, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said.

"Wagner" "probably" controls most of Soledar

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described the situation in Donetsk and Luhansk regions as the "heaviest" on the front. In the traditional video address for the end of the 320th day of the war, he explained that the battle for Donbas continues.

A short time later, an assessment by British military intelligence was also published, according to which the main Russian private military company Wagner and the forces of Russia probably control most of the city in this attack. "Wagner" is the driving force in the offensive.

With his words, Zelensky confirmed that the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut has ceased to be the focus of the battles in the course of the ongoing 10 and a half month war, in which Bakhmut was for some time the most dangerous place and which Zelensky visited at the end of last year.

"Although the occupiers have now concentrated their greatest efforts on Soledar, the result of this hard and prolonged battle will be the liberation of our entire Donbas," he added.

"Thank you to all our soldiers who are defending Bakhmut... and the fighters in Soledar who are resisting the new and even fiercer attacks from the invaders," he added.

According to him, in Soledar, Ukraine has gained "additional time and additional forces" thanks to the endurance of the soldiers. However, Zelensky then described the cost of the attack to which the city was subjected:

“And what did Russia want to win there? Everything is completely destroyed, there is almost no life left. And thousands of people have been lost: all the land below Soledar is littered with the bodies of the occupiers and traces of blows. This is what madness looks like.”

And Bakhmut, 10-15 km from Soledar, is considered almost destroyed: of the 72,000 pre-war population, 12,000 remained in it by the end of December.

Bakhmut remains under Ukrainian control, this was also the situation in Soledar, but yesterday, when Ukraine confirmed a "powerful assault" on Soledar, Russian pro-military channels on Telegram spoke of Russian successes in the center. In the days of the so-called Christmas truce announced by Moscow, Wagner's founder Yevgeny Prigozhin announced that they were advancing alone in the city. Then there was information that the "Wagner" managed to break through the Ukrainian siege, but over the weekend, Kyiv forces seemed to be able to stabilize the front.

And the new offensive against Soledar, which Ukraine announced last night, was formed by "the best reserves of Wagner".

Meanwhile, Russia and Ukraine continued to exchange fire in other parts of the country. At least 15 were injured as a result of a rocket attack on Ochakov in Mykolaiv region, the head of the regional military administration, Vitaly Kim, announced. According to him, more than 100 homes were damaged and had broken windows.

“Solder is holding!”

"Soledar is holding on!" was the most common status of Ukrainians on Twitter and Telegram on Tuesday morning, despite the fact that the city is already surrounded on three sides and its streets are being fought over every inch of land. Expectations last night were that forces dominated by the private company "Wagner" would establish control over the city overnight, but Ukrainian defenses are holding their own for now.

Military journalist Andriy Tsaplienko (a recipient of two orders of bravery), citing a Ukrainian officer who participated in the defense of Soledar, dissects the battles for the city and the tactics of PMC "Wagner" north of the city. Yevgeny Prigozhin's formation, composed of a mix of professionals and cannon fodder, applies competent tactics, which is also reflected in the latest analysis of the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), according to which, in the battle for Soledar, Putin's Chef is considered successful on this ground to strengthen the authority of his private army as an effective military force.

How Wagner acts according to Tsaplienko's description.

First a group, usually composed of 8 people, is drawn to a forward endpoint. The whole party is armed to the max with ammo, everyone has a Bumblebee flamethrower. The task of this group is to get to the intended forward point and anchor. These are almost certainly suicides. In case of death, their ammunition remains for the next group.

This group moves as close as possible to the Ukrainian positions and digs in as quickly as possible. A white cloth or other sign is left on a tree around, so that a succeeding group can find their way in the event of the death of their predecessors and find where the positions already dug in and where the weapon is.

During fire contact, the Wagnerites discovered the Ukrainian firing positions and transferred them to their artillery. As a rule, then 120-mm and 80-mm mortars work. Up to 10 mortars simultaneously begin to suppress the exposed Ukrainian position. Artillery fire can last several hours at a time.

During this time, a second group positioned itself 500 meters from the first. It is more lightly equipped. Under the cover of artillery, this group began an assault on the Ukrainian position. If the second group fails to take a position, a third and even a fourth follows.

That is, four waves of eight people for one Ukrainian position.

One of the groups has a drone operator. He coordinates artillery fire directly from the battlefield. If they manage to suppress the Ukrainian position, they "cleanse" it using a drone, grenades, small arms, described Tsaplienko.

To effectively fight against Wagner's tactics, according to the military correspondent's source, it is necessary for the Ukrainian positions to have lightly armored equipment at close range. As soon as the drone operators notice the movement of the enemy towards the positions, they should inform the "armored equipment". It quickly quells the attack of the "Wagner" fighers even with machine guns. Without armored support, it is difficult to contain such assaults.

Secondly, according to the Ukrainian military, fighters must be prepared for close range combat. The main reason for the success of the Russians and the defeat of the Ukrainians in such small assault operations may be the lack of counter-battery combat. The artillery began to shell the attackers instead of suppressing the enemy's artillery. Without the cover of the same mortars, the assaults of the "Wagner" fighters are simply suffocated. And for an effective counter-battery fight, a larger number of drones and their operators in positions are needed, according to the author of the analysis.

As of 9 a.m., according to both sides - Ukrainian and Russian, and the maps of military bloggers, the battle is being fought in the central part of Soledar. "Wagner" stormed simultaneously in two directions - from the South in the region of Krasnaya Gora and from the North from Yakovlevka. The city was not captured, but the Russians had fire control over one of the two routes, along which the VSU could receive additional supplies or reinforcements. The Russians claim that the city will be captured today.

In a conversation with Mark Feigin, VSU officer Taras Berezovets explains why Soledar and Bakhmut are so important for Russia at this time. For the Russians, the capture of Soledar and Bakhmut is not a military, but a political task. Neither settlement is of particular strategic importance, but their occupation can be "sold" to the Russian citizens as a great success and a significant victory. There is another reason why Russia is ready for unreasonably high losses in the battle for Bakhmut and Soledar, and it is the personal ambitions of Prigozhin, who in this way tries to show everyone how much his mercenaries are worth, a thesis that ISW also voices.

The owner of "Wagner" does not want to share the battle glory from Soledar with anyone and even came out with an official message about the "rumors" from the front. "Various fakes are being spread in the media about the participation of various military formations in the capture of Soledar. I want to emphasize that Soledar was captured exclusively by units of PMC Wagner", Prigozhin said in a video.

And one more hypothesis - of Censor.net editor-in-chief Yury Butusov - Soledar is needed by Putin to show that the mobilization allowed to "break" the course of the war.

Poland wants a coalition to supply modern tanks to Ukraine

Poland is encouraging other countries to form a broad coalition to supply modern battle tanks like the Leopard to Ukraine, Deputy Foreign Minister Pawel Jablonski and other officials told the Polish public radio.

"The issue is raised. The first thing is to find out what our allies from the Western countries will do," Jakub Kumoch, security adviser to President Andrzej Duda, told Zet radio, DPA reported.

Poland could be part of such a coalition, but would not make a move alone because it was unable to do so, he said.

Kumokh described reports that Warsaw was ready to hand over several hundred or even all of its Leopard main battle tanks to Ukraine as "disinformation." At best, he said, the debate was about "a few or a dozen issues." The National Security Council will discuss the matter with Duda, among others, later today, he said.

Following the German government's decision to supply Ukraine with around 40 Marder infantry fighting vehicles, officials also continue to discuss whether to supply battle tanks.

On Saturday, the co-chairman of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's Social Democratic Party said he remained skeptical of requests to supply Kyiv with Leopard battle tanks without coordination among NATO allies.

"No country is supplying battle tanks that are as heavy as the Leopard 1 or 2," Lars Klingbeil said in an interview with RTL on Saturday.

The Germans are sending Marders, an infantry fighting vehicle, and a Patriot battery after months of calls from Kyiv.

A survey conducted by the sociological institute "Insa" for the newspaper "Bild" showed that 49% of respondents were generally against the decision to supply Marder, and 40% supported it.

Asked about the delivery of "Leopard", 50% are against and 38% are in favor.

“The decision of Western governments to send tanks to Ukraine will only prolong the suffering of the Ukrainian people and will not change the outcome of the war,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said today, DPA reported.

The Kremlin has said the Russian government is not concerned about potential supplies of more sophisticated military equipment to Kyiv.

"Basically, these supplies cannot change anything and will not change anything in Ukraine," Peskov said, Interfax news agency reported.

The US is considering sending Stryker combat vehicles to Ukraine

The United States is considering sending Stryker armored fighting vehicles to Ukraine as part of an upcoming aid package to help Kyiv repel an expected Russian spring offensive, Politico reports, according to sources familiar with the discussions.

The news follows the Biden administration's announcement last week that it would send 50 Bradley fighting vehicles.

According to a Defense Ministry official who spoke on condition of anonymity, the Stryker could be part of the next tranche of military aid. The administration could announce the package, with or without the Stryker, late next week during the Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting in Germany.

Officials stressed that no final decision had been made and the administration could decide to send the Stryker in a future package.

"We have no comment at this time," the Pentagon spokesman said.

The Strykers will be another addition to the capabilities of Kyiv's rapidly growing arsenal and will help meet a critical need for armored vehicles. Especially with growing fears of a new Russian offensive this spring.

Although Strykers are not as powerful or protective as tanks, the eight-wheeled armored fighting vehicle created by General Dynamics Land Systems can operate in snow, mud and sand.

"Ukrainians need armored personnel carriers and in the absence of other countries to provide them, this is what we have in service," the MoD official said. "It's not as good as the Bradley for tank combat, but it's good for protecting infantry and getting close to the enemy."

The US has already sent thousands of combat vehicles to Ukraine, including Humvees and mine-resistant vehicles used to move troops around the battlefield. But the Strykers could offer a balance between tank and APC.

The military says the wheeled vehicle is quieter than the Bradley and notes that it can carry more troops -- nine compared to six in the standard Bradley.

The vehicles have been deployed regularly to Iraq with US infantry battalions, where they allow US troops to move quickly on paved roads while offering greater protection than a Humvee, along with a 50-caliber machine gun remotely controlled by a soldier in the vehicle.

Ukraine already has such a vehicle, as the first of a planned 39 Canadian armored combat support vehicles - a Canadian version of the Stryker, also built by General Dynamics - began arriving in Ukraine in recent weeks. The vehicles were originally purchased for the Canadian Armed Forces, but in June Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that he was redirecting their delivery to Ukraine.

The US sold 60 Strykers to Thailand and North Macedonia bought 16.

The deployment of powerful armored vehicles such as the Bradley and Stryker could be a precursor to the provision of tanks.

"There's a strange situation with the Europeans where every time someone asks, the Europeans say, 'Well, you know, the US should go first.' And the administration says, 'Well, we want the Europeans to go first, or we want to do it together". And the Ukrainians are saying: For God's sake, just give us tanks," said a person familiar with these discussions.

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Tags: Ukraine, Russia, Zelensky, soldear

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