Ukrainian forces advance at Svitlodarsk Salient
On January 11, the Spokesman of the Defense Ministry of Ukraine, Alexander Motuzyanik, stated at a press conference in Kyiv that Ukrainian soldiers took control of new positions on the contact line at the Svitlodarsk Salient.
He noted that this advance of Ukrainian forces does not violate the Minsk agreements.
“During the last month, the situation along the Svitlodarsk Salient has been very tense. As a result of the clashes with the separatists, the units of the Ukrainian Armed forces took control of certain very important positions. These are the new positions but they are within the limits of the demarcation line. So, the Minsk Agreements have not been violated,” Motuzyanik stated.
On January 12, Ukrainian volunteer activist, Yuriy Misyagin, wrote on his Facebook page that, “The latest news, short and without any extra details. Yesterday our guys from 54th Brigade made another considerable advance forward, almost by 1 kilometer. Yes, we are on new positions again… And no violations. According to all the international agreements this is our territory.”
Journalist Irina Baglay, wrote in her article for podrobnosti.ua news web site that, “The shelling never stops at Svitlodarsk Salient. Separatists fortify their strongholds during the day and at night they shell the positions of the Ukrainian Army. On the night of January 12th they struck both Avdiivka and Novhorodske at the same time.”.
On January 12, OSCE observed the battery of self-propelled howitzers in the town of Novohryhorivka which is under the control of separatists. OSCE also published a video of artillery fire in the direction of the Ukrainian positions near Svitlodarsk that was recorded by an UAV of the OSCE.