russian media: russia and ukraine start fighting for pokrovsk
2024-09-05
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reference news reported on september 5according to a report on the russian newspaper viewpoint on september 3, the situation in the donbass direction of the ukrainian army is deteriorating, and the army is withdrawing from its positions near pokrovsk (called red army city by the russian side). before the special military operation began, pokrovsk was one of the important centers of ukraine's coal industry. what does losing it mean to ukraine's economy? what are the prospects after the russian army captures it?
the russian army continued its offensive in the donbass direction. under the pressure of the russian assault, the ukrainian army left its position in the area of the hospital building in the south of shelidovo.
shelidovo is only 20 kilometers away from pokrovsk, an important coal industry center in ukraine. zelensky also acknowledged the problem in the donbas direction and ordered to strengthen the ukrainian army's strength here.
fighting in the ugledar region was also fierce. experts believe that the loss of ugledar will not have much impact on the ukrainian army, but pokrovsk is important to the ukrainian army for three reasons. the first is economic factors. the fate of this city determines the future direction of ukraine's remaining metallurgical industry. the second is logistical factors: capturing pokrovsk will open the way for the russian army to dnipropetrovsk oblast. the third is political factors: the battle for pokrovsk will greatly affect the morale of the ukrainian side.
"to be honest, russia has no interest in ukrainian coal. we produce about 450 million tons of coal a year," said economist and political scientist ivan lizan. "as for ugledar, the coal mines there are practically non-existent. the enemy turned them into fortifications."
lizan said that overall ukraine could survive without ugledar, "but losing pokrovsk would be a heavy blow to ukraine."
lizan pointed out: "there is a village in the southwest of pokrovsk, where there is the only coal mine in the ukrainian-controlled area that can mine coking coal in large quantities. the total output in 2022 was about 4 million tons, but at its peak it produced more than 8 million tons per year."
the expert said that ukraine still uses the mine. but the fact is that ukraine's metallurgical industry does not have enough domestic coking coal even at minimum production. after the start of the special military operation, ukraine's coking coal imports have increased year by year, which shows that the production of its domestic coal mines has dropped significantly.
lizan pointed out that it is difficult for ukraine to import the millions of tons of coking coal it needs from the eu, and transportation is also very difficult. therefore, if ukraine loses pokrovsk, it will mean "no more coking coal."
lizan analyzed that before the special military operation, ukraine's metallurgical industry was an important creator of foreign exchange income for the country. if the ukrainian army loses pokrovsk, ukraine will also lose its metallurgical industry. during the soviet era, ukraine produced about 50 million tons of steel per year, about 29 million tons in 2013, and fell to 20-22 million tons in 2021. last year, it was only about 6 million tons.
lizan pointed out: "by taking pokrovsk, we will inflict the greatest economic damage on the enemy."
however, it is impossible for the russian army to quickly capture pokrovsk and ugledar, and this should also be taken into consideration, so we should not be too optimistic.
military analyst mikhail onuflenko said: "ugledar is located at a higher altitude and has dense high-rise buildings. in recent years, the enemy has established a foothold here. as for pokrovsk, we haven't even started to attack it. but the city is one of the enemy's most important logistical hubs, connecting multiple railways and roads. the ukrainian army will fight desperately to defend it."
for the russian army, capturing pokrovsk will open the way for it to enter dnepropetrovsk oblast. onuflenko said: "from pokrovsk to the west, the city becomes less dense and some grassland areas appear. the enemy will have to build a defense line from scratch in some places." (compiled by zhu lifeng)
