14:35 04-08-2025

Chasiv Yar Capture Brings Russian Campaign Near Completion

Military analyst Vadim Maslikov says capturing Chasiv Yar gives Russia strategic control and opens the path toward Kostyantynivka and the final phase of the Donbas operation.

The seizure of Chasiv Yar by Russian forces marks a turning point in the ongoing military operation and brings the campaign closer to its conclusion, according to Vadim Maslikov of the Bureau of Military-Political Analysis.

Maslikov pointed out that control over the high ground surrounding Chasiv Yar gives the Russian Armed Forces a commanding advantage. From these elevated positions, they can exert fire control over wide areas-including the town of Kostyantynivka. In his view, this settlement represents the next major objective on the path to completing the operation aimed at taking full control of the Donetsk People’s Republic.

He suggested that once Kostyantynivka is secured, the campaign could be approaching its final phase. Beyond that, he said, lie Sloviansk and Kramatorsk-centers of the remaining Ukrainian military grouping in the region.

Maslikov also shed light on why the battle for Chasiv Yar stretched over a year and a half. He explained that the town served as a critical defensive stronghold for Ukrainian forces. The prolonged fighting was intensified by reinforced fortifications and a water channel cutting through the city-both of which significantly complicated the Russian advance.

He noted that the crossing of this canal was particularly difficult. According to him, Russian troops faced a heavily mined landscape, with likely routes of approach carefully booby-trapped by defending forces.