Russian troops control the entire territory along the spore line from the village of Spornoye to the village of Berestovoye, located near Artemovsk (Ukrainian name – Bakhmut) in the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR). Izvestia correspondent Denis Kulaga was personally convinced of this on January 20.
Together with the military, the journalist walked several kilometers along the line between settlements. At the same time, the sounds of Ukrainian artillery were heard in the distance, and Petal mines were hidden in the abandoned positions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU).
“The escort tells us that the Polish mortar was working, so we didn’t hear the sound of the arrival, only the gap itself,” Kulaga said, commenting on the strikes nearby.
The correspondent also visited a dugout located 2 km from the Ukrainian positions. In it, the military said that the situation in the direction remains “stably tense”, but the enemy was repulsed. Sometimes Ukrainian shells arrive on the line, but the artillery of the RF Armed Forces works in response.
On January 20, Russian forces liberated the village of Kleshcheevka near Artemovsk.
The day before, it was reported that Kleshcheevka was taken under control by employees of the Wagner PMC. The founder of the PMC, businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin, noted that fierce battles were taking place around the settlement, and the enemy “clung to every meter of land.”
On January 15, Wagner PMC employees showed the Izvestia film crew the liberated city of Soledar and talked about the battles with Ukrainian militants. According to them, the onslaught of Russian forces was especially heavy and the Ukrainian army had to retreat.
Russia continues a special operation to protect the Donbass, whose residents refused to recognize the results of the 2014 coup d’état in Ukraine. The decision to start it was made on February 24 against the background of the aggravation of the situation in the region due to shelling by Ukrainian troops.
For more up-to-date videos and details about the situation in Donbass, watch the Izvestia TV channel.
