He noted that due to the infiltration tactics used by Russia, almost the entire city has turned into a “gray zone” where military clashes can start at any moment. At the same time, Druzhivka, about 10 kilometers away, is constantly shelled by Russian forces.
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“Kramatorsk and the neighboring Sloviansk form the center of the Kyiv-controlled part of Donetsk region. Before the Russian offensive, about 250,000 people lived here. Today, less than half remain. Moscow is determined to capture this region at any cost,” noted A. Hackensberger.
The analyst reminded that Russian dictator Vladimir Putin has set a goal to capture the entire Donetsk region by the end of this year. According to the journalist, such a deadline is unrealistic because the Russian army is advancing slowly and suffering huge losses of soldiers and equipment.
At the same time, the analyst drew attention to an important detail – if a year ago the Russians were about 30 kilometers away from Kramatorsk, now this distance has halved. He explains the occupiers’ success by their infiltration tactics. Although it requires a lot of time and results in heavy losses, it allows Moscow to capture new territories in Ukraine.
Considering this, A. Hackensberger assumes that Kramatorsk and other Ukrainian-controlled cities in Donetsk region may soon suffer the same fate as the currently occupied regional cities.
“Infiltration is a problem, but it can be controlled. It only requires sending special forces and conducting territory clearing operations,” commented Anton Samarin, deputy commander of the 93rd brigade.
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The analyst believes that stopping Russia in Donbas will be one of the most important tasks for the newly appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Mykhailo Drapatyi. According to him, the battle for Donbas will be decisive. No matter how effective the long-range strikes of the Ukrainian defense forces are, losing Donbas would be one of Kyiv’s most painful defeats and one of V. Putin’s greatest victories.
A. Hackensberger emphasized that Russia is unlikely to capture the entire Donetsk region by the end of the year, especially considering the unsuccessful summer offensive. In June, Russian forces occupied an average of 1.03 square kilometers per day. Currently, to fully capture Donbas, they still need to occupy about 5,305 square kilometers.
We remind that earlier the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine reported that Russia may be preparing to open a new front in Chernihiv region. According to the service, this could be either a large-scale offensive or an attempt to divert Ukrainian defense forces from other front directions.
Meanwhile, analysts from the US Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported Ukrainian defense forces’ counterattacks in Kharkiv region. They noted that this concerns the Kupiansk direction, where the Russians recently tried to attack, but their assault was unsuccessful.
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