Soledar, the destroyed village in the Donetsk region of Ukraine that Moscow claimed it had taken control of this month, has reportedly been visited by a Russian proxy official in east Ukraine.
Denis Pushilin, the top Russian official in charge of Donetsk, revealed late Sunday that he had accompanied Zurab Makiev, a member of the Russian parliament, to the destroyed salt mining village.
Pushilin shared a video on social media of the men traveling by automobile to Soledar while carrying weapons and sporting military garb. The photographs could not be independently verified by AFP.
They were the first officials with ties to Moscow to assert that they had been to the town, whose conquest Russia has celebrated as a big achievement.
Following the tour, Pushilin declared on Russian state television that Soledar had been “destroyed” and that “virtually no intact buildings remained.”
The town’s capture, according to the defense ministry, is a crucial step in driving Ukrainian troops from Bakhmut, a larger mining town nearby.
Pushilin said that the conflict was “intensifying” in Bakhmut, that Russian troops were moving forward, and that mercenaries were in charge of crucial heights close to Bakhmut.
Although the situation is still challenging, he noted that almost all of his units were making progress.
Video from Pushilin’s visit of Soledar on Sunday revealed that he was escorted by members of the Russian mercenary outfit Wagner.
According to Wagner, it served as Soledar’s attack leader.
Pushilin’s footage featured abandoned apartment buildings and demolished industrial structures, and artillery fire could be heard in the distance.
Some Soledar residents, according to Pushilin, are still living there and are receiving assistance from Wagner fighters.
“Very few people still live there. Wagner fighters provide them with all required assistance “said Pushilin.
He merely stated that “there are still citizens who do not want to leave.”
The separatist leader who is backed by Moscow claimed that Wagner fighters informed the officials of “how deadly the clashes were.”
One warrior is heard saying in the film, “We fought for every house.”
On January 13, Russia asserted authority over Soledar. It is located outside of Bakhmut, a crucial city that Moscow’s soldiers have been attempting to take over for months.
The Ukraine hasn’t formally declared that its troops are leaving Soledar.
