The capture of Soledar by Russian troops in the Donetsk region will not mean the encirclement of Bakhmut. This opinion was expressed by analysts at the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) in their report for January 10..

According to ISW, Russian forces have not taken all of Soledar despite false claims that Ukrainian forces have surrendered the city and that Bakhmut is in danger of imminent encirclement..

" But Yevgeny Prigozhin denied these claims, noting that the Wagnerites are still fighting against the coordinated Ukrainian resistance,"

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The Institute for the Study of War noted that as of January 10, there is only visual confirmation of the presence of Wagner PMC forces in the center of Soledar..

At the same time, the reality of control over the territory from block to block in the city is incomprehensible due to the dynamic nature of urban battles.. However, even if Ukraine loses control of the city, this will not necessarily mean the establishment of control over critical land lines of communications to Bakhmut, analysts say..

The fact that the Russians will not be able to surround Bakhmut in the near future despite increased pressure was previously announced by the British Ministry of Defense.