Russia claims capture of town near Ukraine's strategic city of Bakhmut

Russian military forces have reportedly taken control of a settlement south of of the strategic city of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine amid heightened tensions over the continued flow of Western weapons and munitions into the war-ravaged country.

The Wagner private military company claimed on Friday the capture of Klishchiivka, around nine kilometers south of Bakhmut in the Donetsk region, one of four regions that joined the Russian Federation last year.

Klishchiivka, with a pre-war population of around 400 people, housed units of the Russian-backed Wagner forces who had been involved for months in a fierce battle with the Ukrainian government forces.

The Russian defense ministry has not yet confirmed the development.

Last week, the Wagner private military company claimed its forces had managed to fully seize control of Soledar, a salt mining town in the eastern region of Donetsk.

Both Russia and Ukraine have conceded heavy losses in the fight for Soledar and the nearby larger town of Bakhmut.

Moscow says Russian forces have so far succeeded in making significant progress towards “demilitarizing” Ukraine, one of the goals set out by President Vladimir Putin when he launched the “special military operation” in February 2022.

The battlefield gains come as the United States and its European allies spare no efforts to boost the Ukrainian military effectiveness through the provision of an assortment of advanced missiles and equipment for Kiev.

The United States on Thursday announced a whopping new package of arms and munitions for Ukraine worth $2.5 billion, defying Moscow’s repeated warnings against supplying Kiev with heavy weaponry almost a year into the devastating war.

The Kremlin has on numerous occasions warned that Western military assistance to Kiev will only prolong the war.

US announces whopping $2.5bn in new military aid for Ukraine amid raging war

The United States has announced a whopping new package of arms and munitions for Ukraine worth $2.5 billion, defying Moscow’s repeated warnings against supplying Kiev with heavy weaponry almost a year into the devastating war.

West has 'delusion' that Kiev can win: Kremlin

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Friday Western countries supplying additional tanks to Ukraine would not change the course of the conflict and the West would regret its "delusion" that Ukraine could win on the battlefield.

"We have repeatedly said that such supplies will not fundamentally change anything, but will add problems for Ukraine and the Ukrainian people," Peskov said.

Asked whether the supply of increasingly advanced weapons to Ukraine meant that the conflict was escalating, he answered in the affirmative.

"It really is developing in an upward spiral. We see a growing indirect and sometimes direct involvement of NATO countries in this conflict," Peskov said.

"We see a devotion to the dramatic delusion that Ukraine can succeed on the battlefield. This is a dramatic delusion of the Western community that will more than once be cause for regret, we are sure of that.

Peskov said the way to prevent further escalation was to heed the strategic concerns that Russia had expressed before sending its forces into Ukraine about NATO’s eastward expansion and Kiev’s joining the US-led military alliance.

Russia claims control of strategic town of Soledar, Ukraine denies

Russia says its forces captured the strategic town of Soledar, but Ukraine denies the claim, saying “hot” fighting continues.

Ukraine says detained seven 'Russian agents'

Meanwhile, the Ukrainian security forces announced having detained seven people suspected of handing coordinates to Russian forces for strikes in the eastern Dnipropetrovsk region, where dozens of civilians were recently killed in a missile attack.

The SBU security service said in a statement it had carried out a multi-stage operation to expose an active network of Russia's military intelligence and that as a result "seven Russian agents" were detained.

"The detainees gave the Russians the coordinates of critical infrastructure facilities, including energy enterprises," their statement said, without specifying whether those detained were Russian or Ukrainian.

"Information about the possible involvement of the detainees in the Russian missile attack on a residential building in Dnipro on January 14, 2023, is currently being checked," the SBU added.

Last week, a Russian attack on a residential building in Dnipro, the main city of the Dnipropetrovsk region, left dozens dead.

The SBU released a video alongside the statement showing masked and heavily-armed Ukrainian agents carrying out arrests at several residences.

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