The 'Underground Cities' of the Soledar and Bakhmut Salt Mines

Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the paramilitary Wagner Group, which is leading Russia's fight for the town of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine, has said he hopes to take control of the region's "underground cities" that can be used to house large numbers of tanks and personnel.

Bakhmut has seen some of the most intense fighting of the war in Ukraine. Russian forces in the region are being led by members of the notorious Wagner Group, which was formed in 2014. According to Ukrainska Pravda, 90 percent of Bakhmut's residents have fled, with the 8,000 residents who remain subject to daily fire.

Russian forces and fighters from the Wagner Group are also attempting to capture the nearby town of Soledar.

Prigozhin, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, said on his Telegram channel over the weekend that mines in Bakhmut and Soledar would benefit Russia's campaign in the war, which began after Putin's forces invaded Ukraine on February 24.

"The system of Soledar and Bakhmut mines, which is actually a network of underground cities, can not only [hold] a big group of people at a depth of 80-100 meters, but also tanks and infantry fighting vehicles, which can move about there," he wrote.

He was referring to the network of salt mines, caves and 125 miles of tunnels.

Prigozhin described the mines as "the cherry on the cake" when explaining why he thought the capture of Bakhmut would be significant.

The tunnels contain a vast underground room, which has previously been used to host classical music concerts and soccer matches and is traditionally decorated with fir trees in the winter.

The Soledar salt mine also contain sculptures carved from salt, a chapel and displays of mining tools.

In October 2007, musicians of Donetsk's Philharmonic Orchestra performed a classical music concert before any audience of 350 people.

Prigozhin said stockpiles of weapons had been stored underground in Bakhmut since World War I and that Bakhmut is considered to be a "serious logistics center."

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a U.S. think tank, assessed on Sunday that Prigozhin views the battle for Bakhmut as an attempt to seize and exploit natural resources.

The ISW said Prigozhin's latest statements "are likely an attempt to both explain the slow pace of Wagner's advances around Bakhmut, but may also partially explain his months-long and costly determination to establish control of the area."

Donetsk Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said last week that more than 60 percent of Bakhmut has been destroyed as a result of hostilities, Ukrainska Pravda reported.

"The enemy is pushed back to their previous positions, namely outside the city limits... our defenders courageously defend Bakhmut and prevent the enemy from advancing," Kyrylenko said on national television.

"But, unfortunately, the city itself has suffered and is more than 60 percent destroyed."

Newsweek reached out to Russia's Foreign Ministry for comment.

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