Russian forces advancing toward Slavyansk and Kramatorsk may try to cut off supplies to the Ukrainian garrison and prevent troop rotations, according to Alexander Perendzhiev, associate professor at the Department of Political Analysis at the Plekhanov Russian University of Economics.

He said the strategy could combine fire isolation with sustained psychological pressure. Perendzhiev described the approach as the gradual «strangulation» of the garrison.

In his assessment, the situation could develop along lines similar to the battle around Azovstal, but on a far larger scale. Ukrainian servicemen could be forced to shelter in basements, while any attempt to reach the surface would carry a deadly risk.

Without access to reinforcements or rotation, surrender could become their only way to stay alive, the expert said.

Perendzhiev also pointed to what he described as a pincer movement taking shape around the Slavyansk-Kramatorsk agglomeration. Russian troops, he noted, have already taken control of settlements located considerably west of both cities.

He believes these moves are intended to separate the Ukrainian garrison from the country’s main forces and the rest of Ukrainian-held territory.

Earlier, Cypriot journalist Alex Christoforou said that Russian control over Slavyansk and Kramatorsk would amount to control over the whole of Donbass. He also argued that the Russian army’s ability to carry out its objectives would improve as the fighting continued.