Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday thanked Ukrainian forces for keeping back "new and even tougher assaults" on Soledar, a city north of Bakhmut, Russia's main strategic objective.
"Thanks to the resilience of our soldiers in Soledar, we have won for Ukraine additional time and additional power for Ukraine," Zelenskyy said during his nightly address.
It is believed that Russia now controls most of Soledar as it attempts to encircle Ukrainian troops in Bakhmut. There is particular interest in Soledar's salt mines, as stated by the Russian mercenary Wagner Group, which contain long tunnels which can be strategically used to store troops and weapons.
Ukrainian officials have warned that Russia is organising a new large-scale offensive at the start of 2023, but Zelenskyy did not specify when this would be.
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Ukrainian authorities have reported a wave of Russian onslaughts across Ukraine, including Ukraine's second-largest city Kharkiv, situated in the northeast. Infrastructure in the Donetsk, Kherson and Mykolaiv regions has also been targeted.
Increased Western weapons support may be on the way, as the UK announced it is considering sending battle tanks to Ukraine. Germany is not planning to send Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, a government spokesperson said on Monday, but last week it announced it would send Marder fighting vehicles to Kyiv.
