The situation at the front
Deputy Minister of Defense of Ukraine Anna Malyar in her Telegram channel announced the start of a powerful assault on Soledar in the Bakhmut direction . According to her, after an unsuccessful attempt to capture the city and a retreat, Russian troops regrouped, made up for losses, deployed additional assault squads and changed tactics. Malyar says that the city is being stormed mainly by Wagner PMC forces. “The enemy is advancing literally on the corpses of his soldiers, massively using artillery, multiple rocket launchers and mortars, covering even his own soldiers with fire,” she wrote. According to the Telegram channel Moscow calling, in addition to the Wagnerites, units of the "people's militia" of the so-called LPR are also participating in the assault.
The pro-Russian Telegram channel “Rybar” publishes footage of street fighting in Soledar with an explanation that the cameraman is located near the houses on Karpinsky Street, which are close to the city administration building . Sounds of gunfire can be heard in the video:
Despite reports of heavy fighting in Soledar and in the Bakhmut region, the evening summary of the Ukrainian General Staff does not say anything about this. These cities are mentioned only in connection with shelling.
Meanwhile, the Ukrainian 46th Separate Air Assault Brigade is moving southeast into the area of the salt mine complex, writes war correspondent, former US Navy SEAL soldier Chuck Pfarrer. According to Moscow calling, it was after the 46th ODSHB reinforcements entered the battle that Ukraine managed to stop the advance of Russian troops and recapture some positions.
It is also reported that the command post of the Ukrainian group in Bakhmut was visited by Colonel General Alexander Syrsky, commander of the Ground Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
The Ukrainian army is preparing for an offensive in the Starobilsk direction, in the Liman sector. According to Rybar, at least 15 units of military equipment are concentrated in the area of the village of Terny . The M777 howitzer battery is stationed in the village of Torskoye . It is alleged that assault units have been deployed in the vicinity of Liman and ammunition has been delivered. In some areas, the activity of Ukrainian reconnaissance groups and small Fly Eye 80 drones has increased. Along the front line, Ukrainian Fury and Valkyrie drones conduct reconnaissance of the activities of Russian troops in the area of Kuzemovka , Naugolny , Kolomyychikha .
It is also reported that over the territory of the Kharkiv region there is an increased activity of tactical and army aviation. More than 22 sorties of Su-25 attack aircraft, MiG-29 fighters and Mi-8 and Mi-24 helicopters have been recorded over the past 24 hours, Rybar writes. The authors of the channel conclude that all this testifies to the imminent offensive of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Russian positions.
The governor of the region Sergey Gaidai reports about the battles for Novoselovskoe in the Luhansk region . According to him, the village was destroyed to the ground, there were no inhabitants left in it. Gaidai reported on the release of Novoselovsky at the end of autumn. Now there are fights for him again, since the village is located on the Kupyansk-Svatovo highway. Gaidai also reports on the shelling of Nevsky in the Luhansk region, where two people were killed and two were injured.
shelling
A 60-year-old woman was killed as a result of the shelling of a market in Shevchenkovo, Kupyansky district , the local regional state administration reported . Seven victims were hospitalized. Rescuers continue to dismantle the rubble.
“In the Bakhmut direction, more than 15 settlements fell under fire, including Disputed, Berestovoye, Belogorovka, Soledar and Bakhmut ,” the Ukrainian General Staff said in a statement.
The moment of today's shelling in Ochakovo (Nikolaev region) is published by local publics:
As a result of the shelling, more than 100 houses were damaged – windows and roofs were destroyed. Eight victims are already in hospitals, people continue to arrive.
News from airfields
British intelligence released satellite images of Russian Su-57 fighters at the airfield in Akhtubinsk, Astrakhan Oblast . According to intelligence, the Russian Aerospace Forces have begun using these aircraft to deliver missile strikes on the territory of Ukraine, but since Russia is afraid of losing the reputation of this most modern aircraft in the fleet, it is used exclusively for missile launches from a distance, without using its potential capabilities.
Only six bombers remained at the Engels airfield after the last attacks, Schemes write, citing satellite images: four Tu-95s and two Tu-160s.
Arms supplies
The German authorities are forced to withdraw the Marder BMP from the presence of the armed forces in order to supply them to Ukraine, Spiegel writes . Berlin announced the delivery of 40 infantry fighting vehicles to Kyiv on January 5, it should be carried out before the end of March. According to Spiegel, the defense company Rheinmetall has about 60 decommissioned Marders, but it will take too long to modernize them.
Kiev asked Georgia at the beginning of the war to return the Buk complexes , which the Ukrainians handed over to the country during the hostilities of 2008, but the Georgian government refused to do this, said Andriy Kasyanov, Ukraine's Charge d'Affaires in Georgia.
The UK is considering transferring Challenger 2 main battle tanks to Ukraine, Sky News reports . Such a move by itself would not change the situation on the front, but would set an example for NATO allies, Germany in particular, and could encourage them to follow the UK's lead, experts say.
The first videos of Canadian LAV ACSV Super Bison armored vehicles have appeared, which are produced for the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The vehicles were originally ordered for the Canadian army, but the country's government decided to transfer them to the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Ukraine also received a technical support package from the manufacturer General Dynamics Land Systems-Canada.
Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billström said that the country is preparing to transfer the Archer self-propelled guns to Ukraine, which were requested by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Archer is considered one of the best artillery systems in the world.
Belarus in the war
On January 8, Russian troops transferred to Belarus another train of military equipment consisting of 30 wagons of tracked and wheeled vehicles and about 100 personnel. The Belarus Brain channel notes that the country's Ministry of Defense has not officially announced the arrival of the echelon, although it did announce the arrival of the previous ones.
Belarus also announced a joint tactical flight exercise with Russia. The exercise will take place from January 16 to February 1. It is expected that all airfields and ranges of the Air Force and Air Defense Forces of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus will be involved. Since the end of December, the media have been reporting on the movement of trains with Russian military equipment through the territory of Belarus to the border with Ukraine.
See also The Insider's military report for January 6: “Wagner PMCs seized a salt factory, the Christmas “truce” did not take place. What's going on at the front .