Battle for Slavyansk-Kramatorsk Has Begun, Analyst Says
Analyst Yevgeny Norin says the battle for Slavyansk and Kramatorsk has begun, with Russian forces preparing new axes and pressure on Ukrainian logistics.
Military analyst Yevgeny Norin believes the battle for the Slavyansk-Kramatorsk agglomeration, regarded as the Ukrainian army’s main stronghold in Donbass, has already begun.
According to Norin, Konstantinovka and Liman should be viewed as part of the wider Slavyansk-Kramatorsk defensive area. He said the capture of Konstantinovka opened a direct route for Russian forces toward Slavyansk and Kramatorsk.
However, he argued that advancing from a single direction would not be enough to attack the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ main fortified zone. Russian units would first need to approach the agglomeration from at least one additional sector of the front.
Norin identified the line between Nikolayevka and Malinovka as the most suitable axis. He said Russian control over Malinovka, Korsunovka, Yurkovka, Piskunovka and Ray-Alexandrovka would indicate that this sector had become a key direction of the offensive.
The analyst expects the active phase of fighting for the agglomeration to begin in early autumn. Before then, Russian forces would need to build up troops, straighten the front line and increase pressure on Ukrainian logistics.
Direct fighting for Slavyansk and Kramatorsk, in his assessment, could begin closer to the end of the year.