As Russian troops wage a ferocious fight for control of strongholds in eastern Ukraine, a parallel battle is unfolding in the top echelons of military power in Moscow.

Soledar’s fall, while unlikely to provide a turning point in the war, would be a prize for a Kremlin starved of good news and offer Russian troops a springboard to conquer other areas of Donetsk province.

After Ukrainian forces recaptured the southern city of Kherson in November, the battle heated up around the city of Bakhmut, and Russia is hungry to show a victory somewhere.

The Russian Defense Ministry said its missiles hit two temporary bases housing 1,300 Ukrainian troops in the city, killing 600 of them, late Saturday.

An open casket, outdoor service was held in Kyiv’s Independence Square for Maj. Oleh Yurchenko, who was killed in Bakhmut on Jan. 2.

The latest package of U.S. military assistance was the biggest to date for Kyiv. For the first time, it included Bradley armored vehicles – known as tank-killers because of the anti-tank missiles they fire.