Soledar is now under the complete control of the Russian Army (its Wagner wing).

Hundreds of fighters from the Ukrainian side have been taken prisoner.

Mop-up operations continue, but they are increasingly turning to patrol duty now.

The Kiev regime will continue to counterattack, futilely. The next goals are Seversk and Artyomovsk.

Join Slavyangrad chat. Your opinion matters.
https://t.me/+PUg0rQrZdiw4YWFh

@Slavyangrad
Join SLG 🔺 Intelligence Briefings, Strategy and Analysis, Expert Community

Ukrainian soldier in Soledar describes dire situation: "We are just abandoned"

A Ukrainian soldier in the town of Soledar described a dire situation to CNN on Thursday evening, saying “we are just abandoned.”

“We tried to withdraw ourselves, but the Orcs [Russians] are already there. If there is no order to withdraw today, we will most likely not have time to leave,” he told CNN over the phone. “We were told that we would be withdrawn. And now we аre just abandoned.”

He said that the soldiers had run out of food, were running low on water, and that they had wounded soldiers. He said that they still had some ammunition.
“The last evacuation was three days ago,” he said. “The order was to hold out to the very end. Judging by the sounds of the battle, our neighbors [other units] either withdrew or were ordered to withdraw. We were told to hold out.”

“We hold on as long as we can. But anyone can get tired and hit the limit eventually. It is impossible to hold on just on a high morale for so long.”

Join Slavyangrad chat. Your opinion matters.
https://t.me/+PUg0rQrZdiw4YWFh

@Slavyangrad
Join SLG 🔺 Intelligence Briefings, Strategy and Analysis, Expert Community

"Russian forces have taken Artemovsk (Bakhmut) into operational encirclement," said Igor Kimakovsky, adviser to the DPR's acting head.

PS: we're Waiting for confirmed reports from Wagner chief, Prigozhin Or Russian MOD
Join Slavyangrad chat. Your opinion matters.
https://t.me/+PUg0rQrZdiw4YWFh
#Source
@Slavyangrad
Join SLG 🔺 Intelligence Briefings, Strategy and Analysis, Expert Community

German Chancellor Scholz is caught in a trap because of the supplies of Leopard 2 tanks, which Ukraine is hoping for, believes a German former NATO general.

If the Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany refuses to give Poland permission for supplies, he will cause problems with his allies in the North Atlantic Alliance. Agreeing to give Kiev the machines would upset Scholz's own Social Democratic Party, Hans-Lothar Domröse told RND.

Earlier, Berlin stated that it knew nothing about Poland's "tank alliance" and was not going to send Kiev a Leopard 2 yet.

Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine Danilov had already threatened that Germany would have to "fight near Berlin and near Stuttgart" if the Germans did not hand over the tanks.
 
Join Slavyangrad chat. Your opinion matters.
https://t.me/+PUg0rQrZdiw4YWFh

@Slavyangrad
Join SLG 🔺 Intelligence Briefings, Strategy and Analysis, Expert Community

Military expert @Boris_Rozhin reported on the situation near Bakhmut:

Reports on the operational encirclement of Artemovsk and the capture of Krasnaya Gora, Kleshcheevka, and Paraskoviyivka are currently ahead of events (Bakhmut is not under operational encirclement, and these settlements have not been captured). Russian troops are fighting for these settlements, and there is a lot of hard work ahead. There is also much work to be done before fire control is established over the Chasov Yar-Artemovsk road.

Join Slavyangrad chat. Your opinion matters.
https://t.me/+PUg0rQrZdiw4YWFh

@Slavyangrad
Join SLG 🔺 Intelligence Briefings, Strategy and Analysis, Expert Community

❗️ 🇷🇺 In battles in the Artemovsk direction, Wagner fighters completely destroyed the 61st brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. 

We are talking about the brigade whose fighters brazenly marched into Kherson last fall and committed their atrocities against the local population there.
 
Join Slavyangrad chat. Your opinion matters.
https://t.me/+PUg0rQrZdiw4YWFh
#Source
@Slavyangrad
Join SLG 🔺 Intelligence Briefings, Strategy and Analysis, Expert Community

Situation map, 12 Jan

Despite endless false claims of victory, Kievans fear a possible offensive. In the north, AFU is laying mines and strengthening positions. These events provide hints as to upcoming changes in the nature of the SMO. The ambiguous situation in Belarus, success in Soledar, as well as changes in the SMO command structure are clear signs of a sharp change in the situation at the front. There was no "freeze".

⚔️Situation for past days:

⚫️ Svatovo-Kremennoe direction

Our artillery and army aviation worked on militant positions in the vicinity of Kislovka, Berestovoye in Kharkov region and Novoselovsky LPR. In the districts of Kislovka, Olshana, Tabaevka, Krakhmalny and Pershotravnevoy of Kharkiv region, five Ukrainian sabotage & recon groups were liquidated. In addition, in the areas of Stelmahovka, Novolyubovka, Nevsky LPR, Serebryanka and Grigorovka of the DPR, RF Armed Forces, combined active combat operations with complex fires, to inflict heavy losses on the AFU.

⚫️ Soledar direction

In Soledar, city shelters previously used by AFU support units are being cleared. Fighting for the "Salt" railway station continues. According to information from the field, the AFU is regrouping in Seversk region and west of Soledar. Despite rumors about attempts by the Kiev regime to regain control of the city, AFU command should admit the city is lost to them.

⚫️Ugledar direction

In the districts of Novomikhailovka, Prechistovka and Novoselka of the DPR, up to AFU 30 militants and five cars were destroyed by offensive fires.

💥Russian fighter aircraft shot down a Ukrainian Su-25 in the Nikanorovka area of the DPR. An American AN / TPQ-50 radar station was eliminated in the Lozovoy DPR region.

💡The legendary "Bradley" Fighting Vehicle. Now a fairly serious combat vehicle will be delivered to "country 404". Clearly a higher class than what was supplied earlier. What are its features? How to destroy it?

#Source
@Slavyangrad
Join SLG 🔺 Intelligence Briefings, Strategy and Analysis, Expert Community

Russian Diplomat urges to consider accession of new regions to Russia if talks with Ukraine resume

The accession of new regions to Russia should be taken into consideration if the talks with Ukraine resume, director of the Russian Foreign Ministry's Second CIS Department Alexey Polishchuk said in an interview with TASS.

Since the moment when Kiev suspended the negotiations "the situation has largely changed as new regions joined Russia," he noted. "Consequently, new conditions should be considered if the talks resume and continue," the diplomat added.
Moscow has never avoided the talks, Polishchuk pointed out.

"At the end of February 2022, we acceded to Kiev’s request and achieved the mutually acceptable framework for agreements by the end of March or the beginning of April after many rounds of intense work," he said. "However, Kiev, obviously at the behest of the Anglo-Saxons scared by the prospects of the peaceful settlement, unexpectedly interrupted the negotiation process, leaving our proposals dated April 15 unanswered," the official added.

From September 23 to September 27, the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) and the Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR) as well as the Kherson Region and the Zaporozhye Region held a referendum where the majority of voters opted to join Russia. On September 30, Russian President Vladimir Putin and the heads of the DPR and the LPR, the Zaporozhye and Kherson Regions signed treaties on their accession to Russia. On October 4, Putin signed laws on ratification of treaties on accession of the DPR and the LPR, the Zaporozhye and Kherson Regions to Russia.

Join Slavyangrad chat. Your opinion matters.
https://t.me/+PUg0rQrZdiw4YWFh

@Slavyangrad
Join SLG 🔺 Intelligence Briefings, Strategy and Analysis, Expert Community

The European Commission supports Estonia's intention to confiscate Russian assets.

The European Commission supports Estonia's intention to start confiscating Russian financial assets without waiting for other EU countries. EC spokesman Christian Wiegand said this at a briefing in Brussels on Thursday.

"In general, I can say that it is good that individual EU countries have started to move in that direction," he said.
This was quite an expected statement. Well, Russia can respond to it by nationalising the assets of unfriendly countries on Russian territory. A rough estimate puts them at about $1 trillion.

Join Slavyangrad chat. Your opinion matters.
https://t.me/+PUg0rQrZdiw4YWFh
#Source
@Slavyangrad
Join SLG 🔺 Intelligence Briefings, Strategy and Analysis, Expert Community

The First Slavic Brigade of the 1st Army Corps of the Russian Armed Forces shows footage of the use of "incendiaries", a munition that detonates over enemy positions and covers the area with a rain of live incendiary material

Join Slavyangrad chat. Your opinion matters.
https://t.me/+PUg0rQrZdiw4YWFh
#Source
@Slavyangrad
Join SLG 🔺 Intelligence Briefings, Strategy and Analysis, Expert Community

No kidding. How really dangerous are the Ukrainian "Bradleys"?

In Russia, the opinion about the Bradley IFV was greatly influenced by the comedy "The Pentagon Wars", in which corruption in the American army is scourged by the example of this project.

Indeed, the legendary long-term construction lasted 17 years, and $14 billion was spent on development, but in the end the United States still turned it out to be a fairly serious combat vehicle. Although not without drawbacks, they are still of much higher quality than what was supplied to Ukraine earlier.

The AFU will receive M2A2 ODS, an upgraded version based on the experience of the Gulf War, saturated with relatively modern electronics. By the way, during that very war, the Bradleys destroyed more Iraqi tanks than the famous Abrams. No matter how much skeptics laugh at the "aluminum" armor of this IFV, it's not so easy to punch a Bradley in the forehead from a 30-mm cannon of our BMP. The armored vehicle holds 14.5 caliber armor-piercing bullets from all sides, and the presence of dynamic protection ensures high chances of survival of the crew when fired from RPG and ATGM.

The 25-mm M242 Bushmaster cannon is quite comparable to the domestic 30-mm 2A42 and 2A72 guns mounted on the BMP-2 and BMP-3, and 2 TOW-2 ATGMs can effectively resist tanks at a distance of up to 3.7 km. In addition, NATO information and control systems are integrated into the Bradley, and it can be not just a means of strengthening the infantry squad, but also serve as a kind of mini-headquarters.

Does this mean that the Americans have supplied the AFU with a "miracle weapon" that will change the course of the war? No! Bradley has many shortcomings and we have something to destroy this IFV with. The presence of dynamic protection does not guarantee the survival of the vehicle even after a cumulative grenade hit from an RPG, and the side armor will not cope with the guns of our BMP. About what will happen to the Bradley when meeting with a tank shell, we will simply keep silent.

Russian military commanders and patriotic bloggers promise mountains of gold to whoever destroys the first Bradley, not because it is such a terrible enemy, but because it is priceless to show the world footage of burning modern American technology.

(https://t.me/SLGmaps/121)
Join Slavyangrad chat. Your opinion matters.
https://t.me/+Voj2ZQ49JLliM2Ex

#source
@Slavyangrad
Join SLG 🔺 Intelligence Briefings, Strategy and Analysis, Expert Community

Vladimir Orlov, an expert at the Center for Military-Political Journalism, in a conversation with 360, noted that only the main persons of the country have information about what can happen both on the border of Ukraine and Belarus, and in the zone of a special military operation.

“How the further situation will develop, only the General Staff of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation and the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, President Vladimir Putin, knows about this. In addition to them, there are no other people who are familiar with the operational and strategic plans for the further development of a special military operation, I suspect that there are none in our country. And if there are, they probably did not share this information with us. In this case, we can only assume what might happen."

Orlov suggested that the Belarusian direction could become the main one in the framework of the special operation this spring. He did not rule out that the groupings of troops stationed there would attempt to cut off the Kyiv regime from the logistical channels for the supply of weapons by Western countries.

Yes, it is quite possible, of course, that the Belarusian direction can be considered as one of the options for conducting a spring-summer campaign of a special military operation. It is quite possible to assume that the group that was created there will once again try to cut off Ukraine from Western logistics centers for the supply of weapons. And if you really look at the map like that, then you can see that this is the most optimal direction, since it is the shortest compared to if such an operation is carried out from the current line of contact of the SMO.

The journalist once again explained that the exact course of events is known only in the Russian General Staff. We just have to wait a couple of months until the moment when all these plans will begin their immediate implementation, he concluded.

#source

@Slavyangrad
Join SLG 🔺 Intelligence Briefings, Strategy and Analysis, Expert Community