Did Russia bring down the town of Soledar in Donetsk Oblast? Uncertainty remains, this Saturday, January 14, on the fate of the small town in eastern Ukraine which Russia assured the day before to have taken control after a fierce battle. The announcement was later denied by kyiv. The Ukrainian capital was also the target of several explosions this Saturday morning, journalists from Agence France Presse noted, with Ukrainian officials saying that strikes had targeted key infrastructure.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), already present in the Zaporijia nuclear power plant occupied by the Russian army, will send experts to other Ukrainian sites in the coming days and eventually triple their number. On the Russian side, on Friday, the authorities added the name of popular actor Arthur Smolianinov to the list of “foreign agents”, a qualifier widely used by Moscow to suppress critical voices.
London to send Challenger 2 tanks to Ukraine
During an interview with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak underlined “the UK’s willingness to step up its support to Ukraine, in particular by providing Challenger 2 tanks and artillery systems extra,” Downing Street said. The Kingdom would thus become the first country to send Western-made heavy tanks to help kyiv against the Russian invasion.
London does not specify how many tanks it intends to send, nor when or how it intends to provide training in the use and maintenance of the Challenger 2. But the two leaders agree on the “need to take advantage” of recent Ukrainian victories who “repelled the Russian troops”. The Ukrainian head of state thanked the UK on Twitter for taking decisions that “not only will strengthen us on the battlefield, but will also send the right signal to other partners”.
Since the beginning of the Russian invasion almost a year ago, kyiv’s European allies have already delivered nearly 300 modernized Soviet tanks, but never yet Western-built heavy tanks, despite repeated requests from the Ukraine. The British announcement comes after Poland said it was ready on Wednesday to deliver 14 Leopard 2 heavy tanks, a German tank model considered one of the most powerful in the world. Last week, France, Germany and the United States promised to send armored vehicles carrying infantry or reconnaissance tanks – 40 German Marders, 50 American Bradleys and French AMX-10 RCs. Further announcements could come on January 20, at the next meeting of Ukraine’s allies in Ramstein, Germany.
Turkey seeks ‘localized ceasefires’ in Ukraine
Turkey wants to promote “localized ceasefires” in Ukraine because it does not hope for a more comprehensive peace agreement at this stage, Ibrahim Kalin, a close adviser to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, said on Saturday. Neither Russia nor Ukraine “are in a position to win militarily”, he also estimated, saying he was convinced “that in the end, they will have to negotiate to reach an acceptable outcome”. “At the moment no one wants to stop the fight but we have to keep calling them. […]. If we cannot reach a comprehensive peace agreement, we will seek (obtain) localized, limited ceasefires, local de-escalations”, developed the adviser.
Since the beginning of the conflict on February 24, Turkey – which maintains good relations with the two capitals – has offered its mediation to end the war. “We have already had some successes,” he said, citing the agreement signed last summer on Ukrainian grain exports via the Black Sea and the Bosphorus (nearly 18 million tonnes exported to date). and the facilitation of exchanges of prisoners of war.
“But it’s not enough […]only a small part of a much larger puzzle”, he continued. For him, any peace agreement will have to be “larger” than only the Russia-Ukraine duo. “Russia wants to be respected as an actor and obtain security guarantees, in particular that NATO will not enter its backyard.” And “Ukraine will not integrate NATO but will also receive security guarantees at its borders”, has advanced Ibrahim Kalin.
Explosion in kyiv: key infrastructure targeted
“A missile attack on critical infrastructure” is underway in kyiv, an adviser to the Ukrainian presidency, Kyrylo Tymoshenko, said on Telegram. The city’s mayor, Vitali Klitschko, reported explosions in the Dniprovskiy district, calling on residents to “stay in the shelters”. The administrative services of the capital indicated that one of the infrastructures of the city had been reached. “Today, the enemy again fired against energy installations,” said operator Ukrenergo, adding that it was working to “eliminate the consequences” of these strikes.
Fragments of a missile fell in the Golosiivsky district, without causing any injuries, Vitali Klitschko said. Since October and a series of setbacks in Ukraine, Moscow has methodically bombarded the country’s vital infrastructure. Electricity companies are working to restore the network as quickly as possible as the country sinks into winter.
Uncertainty remains over the fate of Soledar
“Soledar is under the control of the Ukrainian authorities, our forces have control of it,” Donetsk region governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said on Saturday, adding that “the fighting continues in the city and outside”. This locality and Bakhmout currently remain the “hottest” points of the conflict, he said on television. For its part, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement that the “liberation of the town of Soledar” had been completed “on January 12 in the evening”.
In a rare sign of recognition between these two structures which have often entered into rivalry on the ground in Ukraine, the Russian army then hailed in a message the “courageous actions” of the fighters of the Wagner mercenary group, whose men led “the direct assault on the residential areas of Soledar”. The spokesman for the Eastern Command of the Ukrainian army, Sergiy Tcherevaty, said during the day that his troops were keeping the situation “under control in difficult conditions” in the face of “the best units (of the Russian mercenary group) Wagner and ‘other Russian special forces’.
“This is a difficult phase of the war,” said Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Ganna Maliar, recognizing “a high-intensity (Russian) offensive”.
The IAEA will triple its permanent presence in nuclear power plants
The UN body “will soon be deployed permanently in all power plants in Ukraine, including Chernobyl”, according to a press release published Friday evening. Its general manager, Rafael Grossi, is going there next week to launch the new system. If specific missions have taken place since the beginning of the war, this decision “marks a major expansion”, underlines the IAEA.
Until now, only the very sensitive site of Zaporizhia, close to the front line and regularly the target of bombardments, received staff from the international organization – “up to four” people have been stationed there since September. From now on, “about 11 to 12 experts will be present at all times” in Ukraine to “monitor the situation, examine the equipment” or even “provide technical assistance”, details the Agency.
A popular Russian actor classified as an “foreign agent”
Russian authorities on Friday gave the infamous status of “foreign agent” to a popular actor, Arthur Smolianinov, who said he was ready to fight alongside Ukrainian troops against Moscow. Arthur Smolianinov, 39, left Russia like thousands of his compatriots after the start of the Russian offensive in Ukraine.
In an interview with the opposition newspaper Novaia Gazeta Europe, released last week, he said he could see himself fighting against Russian forces. “If I participated in this war, it would be on the side of Ukraine,” said this actor, known in Russia in particular for his role in the film “The 9th company” released in 2005, which takes place at the time of the invasion of Afghanistan by the USSR. He also said he doesn’t care what will happen to Russia in the future, even if the country is reduced to “radioactive ashes”.