After Mariupol, kyiv, Irpin and Kharkiv, it is the turn of Severodonetsk, a municipality of 100,000 inhabitants before the war, in the far east of Ukraine, to be taken under a deluge of bombs and delivered to the fighting of street.
After Russia changed its strategy to concentrate its forces in the Donbass, in order to "
liberate the separatist republics
", the capture of the city would mark a turning point in the conflict.
It would pave the way for Kremlin troops to control all the rest of the mining region, disputed since 2014 between pro-Russian separatists and loyalist forces.
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After 100 days of war, Russia claimed to have fulfilled some of the objectives of the "
special military operation
" but does not yet have full control of Donbass.
Severodonetsk, the administrative capital of the Lugansk region, is a key step in the validation of Vladimir Putin's objectives.
According to the regional governor, the Russian generals would have set themselves the objective of "
either taking Severodonetsk completely or controlling the Lysytchansk-Bakhmut road
" which would open the way to Kramatorsk, capital of the other, larger Donbass region, that of Donetsk .
With a date in mind: June 10th.
A few days before this deadline, where are the fights in the city?
Russians put defenders under pressure
Saturday evening, June 4, the fighting is raging.
The Ukrainian authorities speak of a "
very difficult situation
", with "
street fighting
".
In possession of 70% of the territory of the city,
“Russia throws all its weight into this battle
”, add the Ukrainians, who are redoubling their efforts to recover their land.
The latter are paying a heavy price, losing up to 90% of their forces in several units, forcing them to retreat to the nearby town of Lisichansk.
The Russians took advantage of this to “
blow up bridges
” in order to prevent the sending of Ukrainian reinforcements.
Bridge that connects the two cities of Severodonetsk with Lisichansk.
ARIS MESSINIS / AFP
The victims and the damage are multiplying.
"
At least six residential towers were damaged in Severodonetsk and Lisichansk
" and "
there were four dead and one injured
", reported the Ukrainian presidency.
Moscow added that it had hit numerous concentrations of Ukrainian troops and equipment in the past 24 hours using its air force and artillery.
Ukrainians retaliate
However, the mission turns out to be more difficult than expected for the Russians.
Indeed, as for Mariupol or kyiv, the Ukrainian military is determined to defend every piece of their besieged land.
The city is therefore divided in two, one part under Russian control, the other in the hands of the Ukrainians.
“
For two days, our forces have been repelling them
,” argued Serguii Gaidai, governor of the Lugansk region.
The presence of combatants from a unit of foreign volunteers was notably noted by the Reuters agency on 2 June.
Foreign volunteers deployed to defend the city of Severodonetsk on June 2.
SERHII NUZHNENKO / REUTERS
The mayor of Severodonetsk, Olexander Striouk, believes in Ukrainian victory, despite the difficulties.
“
Our soldiers managed to redeploy, build a line of defense.
Currently, everything necessary is being done to restore full control over the city,
he said.
Street fighting continues accompanied by regular artillery fire.
Our armed forces are confident that they will get there.
»
After more than three months of fighting, the Russian army has conquered 20% of Ukrainian territory.
A “
war of attrition
” is now being played out there, according to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.