Ukrainian forces are still holding out in the eastern mining town of Soledar despite a massive Russian onslaught, Ukraine's deputy defense minister said late on January 10 after the British Defense Ministry said that Russian forces had likely captured most of the town.
Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar said in a statement that heavy fighting to hold on to Soledar continued, but Ukrainian fighters were "bravely" defending the town.
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"The enemy disregards the heavy losses of its personnel and continues to storm actively," Malyar said. "The approaches to our positions are simply strewn with the bodies of dead enemy fighters," she said.
The head of Russia's Wagner mercenary group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, late on January 10 claimed his forces had taken control of the town, TASS said.
But in a statement quoted by Reuters, he said fighting was still going on in a "cauldron" in the center of the city.
"The number of prisoners will be announced tomorrow," he added, giving no further details.
RFE/RL cannot corroborate specific battlefield claims.
Capturing Soledar and its salt mines would have symbolic, military, and commercial value for Russia and would be Moscow's most substantial gain in months.
U.K. intelligence said in its daily assessment on January 10 that it believes Russia's "Soledar axis is likely an effort to envelop" the nearby city of Bakhmut from the north "and to disrupt Ukrainian lines of communication."
The British assessed that "in the last four days, Russian and [Wagner] forces have made tactical advances" into the historic salt-mining town "and are likely in control of most of the settlement."
Salt Of The Earth: Deep Inside Eastern Ukraine's Massive Soledar Mines
They suggested that each side was "likely concerned" about the possible use by the enemy of 200 kilometers of disused tunnels from the Soledar mine running underneath the area.
The Ukrainian military previously said Russian forces redeployed to Soledar after failing to take the larger nearby town of Bakhmut.
Bakhmut and Soledar lie in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine, which Putin claims to have annexed. Full control of it and the neighboring Luhansk region, the so-called Donbas, is Russian President Vladimir Putin's main priority at this stage in the war, analysts have said.
SEE ALSO: Marders, Leopards, Abrams, Bradleys: What's All This New Western Weaponry Being Sent (Or Not Sent) To Ukraine?The Ukrainian military said Russian troops started regrouping after Moscow unilaterally called a cease-fire in observance of Orthodox Christmas over the weekend.
Amid the fierce fighting in the eastern Donetsk region, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock made a surprise visit to the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, promising to send more weapons less than a week after Berlin pledged to send infantry fighting vehicles that Ukraine had been requesting.
Baerbock pledged further support before leaving Kharkiv, which was hit by Russian shelling after she left.
"The occupiers are striking again," Kharkiv Governor Oleh Synyehubov said on Telegram, telling residents to stay in shelters.
Baerbock stressed that Ukrainians "should know they can rely on our solidarity and support," adding that Germany will keep supplying weapons "that Ukraine needs in order to free its citizens who are still suffering under the terror of Russian occupation."
Baerbock brought with her a package that includes power generators, 20 million euros ($21 million) for demining, and 20 million euros as financial help for the Starlink project ensuring Internet access for the population. She promised more weapons during her visit to Kharkiv but did not go into specifics.
Baerbock's unannounced trip came just days after Chancellor Olaf Scholz agreed to provide to Ukraine Marder infantry fighting vehicles, which Ukraine has long sought along with more advanced Leopard 2 battle tanks.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said Germany's refusal to send the tanks was costing lives and pressed again for Germany to send them.
The "longer it takes to make the decision, the more people will die." he said.
"I have no doubt that Ukraine will receive German Leopard tanks. I think the German government understands somewhere deep in its soul that this decision will be made and the tanks will be transferred to Ukraine," he said.
As word of Baerbock's unannounced visit emerged, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy held a telephone call with European Council President Charles Michel to make another urgent appeal to European powers to send weapons.
Zelenskiy said he informed Michel about the situation on the battlefield and the "urgent needs of Ukraine in armaments."
They also discussed expectations from a Ukraine-EU summit scheduled for February 3 in Kyiv with the participation of the heads of the 27 EU countries, he said.