The Latest Breaking News from Donbas

Russia claims complete control over Mariupol after ‘capturing Azovstal steel plant’

Victory in port city a symbolic boost to Vladimir Putin in faltering war on Ukraine

The Independent UK · May 21, 2022

Russia declares final victory at steel plant in Mariupol and fights for more territory in eastern Ukraine

KYIV, Ukraine — With its grip tightened along Ukraine’s southern coast, including full control of the steel plant that held the world’s attention for months, Russia redoubled its assault Friday on the eastern industrial heartland known as the Donbas.

Los Angeles Times · May 20, 2022

Vladimir Putin’s troops ‘whacked’ in the Donbas as he rushed them into battle too early, says UK

Armed forces minister James Heappey said Russian troops had suffered heavy losses after refocussing on east of Ukraine

Evening Standard · May 17, 2022

EXPLAINER: New front, same challenges for Russian offensive

Russia is readying a massive, new offensive in eastern Ukraine, hoping to reverse its fortunes on the battlefield after a catastrophic start to seven weeks of war

The Independent UK · Apr 12, 2022

Ukraine and Russia 'set for stalemate as they prepare for Battle of the Donbas'

The prediction came from Britain's Chief of the General Staff, who highlighted a series of Kremlin military blunders he said had hampered invading forces' progress

Daily Mirror · Apr 12, 2022

‘The Russians are trying to obliterate us. You think that we’d agree to half-measures now?’

Ivan Fedorov, the exiled mayor of occupied Melitopol, says the battle for Donbas is also a fight for global security

The Guardian - UK · Apr 9, 2022

Ukraine war of attrition could last ‘beyond months’, says top US expert

Next few weeks crucial in determining outcome of conflict, says David Kofman

The Independent UK · Apr 1, 2022

Analysis: Russia falls back on urban siege warfare in Ukraine

Sequential urban sieges are brutally effective, but ensure lasting hatred and make long-term success unlikely.

Al Jazeera · Mar 24, 2022

‘Smells of genocide’: How Putin justifies Russia’s war in Ukraine

Experts analyse the Russian president’s claims of ‘genocide’ as justification for Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

Al Jazeera · Mar 9, 2022

Ukraine: how Putin used a long proxy conflict to justify invasion

In the early hours of February 24, Russia attacked Ukraine, beginning with a barrage of airstrikes in the country’s eastern regions. Other major cities came under siege within a matter of hours, including Kyiv. Russian president Vladimir Putin threatened catastrophic consequences if any foreign actor interfered in this “special military…

The Conversation · Feb 25, 2022