After their victory at Avdivka, the Russians try to “use up” Kiev’s reserves

Hold the line, but at what cost? This is a difficult equation after the February 17 defeat of the Ukrainian army in the fortress town of Avdivka after the first Donbas war in 2014. “It was a parade ground, but also a knife pointed at Donetsk, the criminal capital”15 kilometers away, explains Figaro French military sources.

But what happens now that this lock, protected by a very dense fortification network, is blown? Between 5 and 10 kilometers west of this small industrial town, there is a cluster of seven villages, forming two north-south lines. In a few days, the Russians captured the first (Stepov, Lastokine, Severn), but the Ukrainians resisted the second. On Tuesday, the Russians definitely announced that they had taken Orlivka, but Kiev still held part of Berdychi and Tonenke. A few hundred meters further west is the seventh village, Semenivka, protected by…