In a one-minute video, journalist Antti Kurra summarizes the importance of a salt mining town with 10,000 inhabitants for Russia’s military strategy. Russia and Ukraine have suffered heavy losses in Soledar.
The mining town of Soledar in the Donetsk region of Ukraine has long been under attack by the Russian army and the mercenary group Wagner. Soledar is located less than 10 kilometers from the city of Bahmut, where months of fighting have been described as the bloodiest of the war.
As of Friday, the Russian Ministry of Defense claimed to have taken control of Soledar. The Ukrainian armed forces, on the other hand, said that the fighting was still going on. American news channel CNN (switch to another service) also reported that from Friday afternoon, Finnish time, the forces of the Ukrainian armed forces were withdrawing from the city in an orderly manner.
Both Russia and Ukraine have suffered heavy losses in the battles in the region.
But why is Russia targeting Soledar, a small town of 10,000 inhabitants, when it has already claimed the lives of numerous soldiers?
Watch journalist Antti Kurra’s one-minute summary of the importance of Soledar for Russia in the video below.