KYIV, Ukraine—Russia claimed Friday that its forces captured the fiercely contested salt-mining town of Soledar in eastern Ukraine. Ukrainian authorities said the fight for the town continued.
Since its invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, Moscow has prioritized taking full control of the Donbas—a region made up of the Donetsk and Luhansk provinces, where it has backed a separatist insurgency since 2014. Russia has seized most of Luhansk, but about half of Donetsk remains under Ukraine’s control.
There have repeatedly been conflicting reports over who controls Soledar. The Associated Press could not independently confirm either side’s claim.
“The liberation of the town of Soledar was completed in the evening of Jan. 12,” said Lt. Gen. Igor Konashenkov, the Russian Defense Ministry’s spokesman, calling the development “important for the continuation of offensive operations in the Donetsk region.”…