The leader of the Russian paramilitary group Wagner said on Sunday that his troops had taken the Ukrainian town of Krasna Hora, a few kilometers north of Bakhmout, a key city that Moscow has been seeking to conquer for several months.
“Today Wagner’s assault units took the locality of Krasna Hora”said Evguéni Prigojine, quoted by his press service.
AFP was unable to verify these independent source statements.
For more than six months, the Wagner group and the Russian army have been trying to capture Bakhmout, in eastern Ukraine, a city of limited strategic importance but which has gained great symbolic importance due to the duration of the fights.
Russian forces have been trying in recent weeks to encircle Bakhmout and have succeeded in cutting several roads to the city vital for the supply of Ukrainian troops.
The Wagner Group announced on January 11 that it had taken Soledar, a larger town not far from Krasna Hora. But the Russian Ministry of Defense had taken two days to announce the conquest of Soledar, revealing dissension between Wagner and the Russian regular army.
“After the capture of Soledar, there was a fuss that other (soldiers) besides Wagner’s fighters were in Soledar. Obviously, the guys weren’t happy.”commented on Sunday Mr. Prigojine.
“Within a radius of 50 kilometers, more or less, there are only Wagner fighters and they will take Bakhmout”he assured.