Britain and its Nato partners, the USA included, have less than a month to decide on how deeply they are prepared to commit to saving Ukraine as a viable independent nation. Ukraine’s forces are now locked in a battle for survival in the Luhansk oblast of the Donbas region, which Russia wishes to claim for its own sphere of influence, if not outright possession.
The towns of Sievrodonetsk and Lyschansk have been under firestorms of Russian artillery, rocket and aerial bombardment. Russian ground forces aim to encircle and trap the most professional and best equipped Ukraine army units. Some are now trying to get away, beat an orderly retreat to defend the areas round Kramatorsk and Slovyansk.
