Russia’s offensive slowed down – what options are left for Putin?

Berlin With the capture of the Ukrainian city of Lysychansk, a major administrative center in the Luhansk region, everything was to change for Russian troops in early summer 2022.

After weeks of fierce attrition, Ukrainian troops withdrew while the Russians, after their first major strategic success, targeted the cities of Sloviansk and Kramatorsk, some 75 kilometers to the west. However, the planned major offensive in the Donbass came to a standstill shortly after Lysychansk.

Now, a good ten months later, history is repeating itself around 50 kilometers to the south in the Donbass. Since the end of January, Russian troops have been trying to capture the city of Bakhmut with a large-scale offensive. From there it should continue to the cities of Slowjansk and Kramatorsk, which are now around 50 kilometers away.