“The city of the Yar in Donetsk region remains one of the epicenter of fierce fighting on the Eastern Front. Recently, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin has repeatedly declared the occupation of the settlement. However, these statements are strongly denied by Ukraine. Such a discrepancy in the statements is not just a factual dispute over the control of the territory, but also the conscious tactics of the information war. The purpose of similar rhetorical”, – WRITE ON: ua.news
The city of the Yar in Donetsk region remains one of the epicenter of fierce fighting on the Eastern Front. Recently, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin has repeatedly declared the occupation of the settlement. However, these statements are decisive are denied Ukraine.
Such a discrepancy in the statements is not just a factual dispute over the control of the territory, but also the conscious tactics of the information war. The purpose of such rhetorical techniques may be demoralization of the enemy, creating an illusion of success for the internal audience and the impact on the international perception of the conflict. This emphasizes how important the cross -comparison of official applications with independent sources is to obtain an accurate picture of events.
Ukrainian representatives consistently refute Russian statements, calling them “another lie.” Construction of the General Staff and online card data Deepstate They confirm Ukraine’s position, demonstrating that the fighting is ongoing, and the city itself is not fully passionate about the enemy.
What is happening around the city now and what is the importance of temporal ravine? UA.news political observer Nikita Trachuk He understood the question.
Battle Chronicles during the Yar: 1.5 years of heroic defense
Intensive battle has been going on for almost a year and a half. The main phase of city battles began in April 2024. Russian troops intensified their efforts to capture the city in the spring of last year, after the slow progress to the eastern outskirts of the settlement. Such a long nature of hostilities testifies to the tactics of war on exhaustion, which is a characteristic feature and is especially evident in the Donbass with its large agglomerations and dense industrial buildings.
Once a relatively large and lively city, where about 13-15 thousand people lived before a full-scale invasion, and the ravine today turned into solid ruins. Some quarters are completely wiped from the face of the earth and are exclusively breasts of the brick. Some still remind that there were once residential buildings.
The city has been almost completely destroyed in almost 1.5 years of intense battles as a result of constant shelling. Such a scale of destruction, in particular the use of “burned land” tactics by Russia, testifies to the conscious strategy of physical destruction of Ukrainian cities.
Bringing the settlement to the The state of the ruins The Russian Federation seeks to eliminate defensive positions, deprive Ukrainian defenders of shelters and fire points, as well as demoralize them, which makes further storms lighter and less expensive for the advancing side. This demonstrates the complete disregard for civilian infrastructure and the life of both the enemy and their own soldiers, who die during such attacks.
The humanitarian situation in the city is catastrophic. There is almost no civilian population. On the eve of the spring of 2024, when the city battles began, about 800 civilians remained in the time spring, and at the beginning of July their number decreased to about 100-130 people. Access to the authorities, police and volunteers for the delivery of humanitarian aid is extremely difficult. For more than a year there is no electr, gas and water supply. There is also no food in the settlement.
Time Yar as a key point of front
The ravine is of great importance due to its location at dominant altitudes, about 10-12 kilometers from Bakhmut in a straight line. The highest point in the city reaches 247 meters, which significantly exceeds the average heights of neighboring cities, such as Konstantinovka, Druzhkivka, Slavyansk and Kramatorsk, which range from 100-125 meters.
This altitude advantage provides panoramic inspection and control of the surrounding area, making the city a natural fortification and peculiar “gate” to other key settlements of Donetsk region. Control over such height gives significant advantages in observation, targeting and defense.
A critical geographical feature is the Siversky Donets-Donbas channel, which runs through the eastern part of the city. This channel serves as a natural defensive barrier, complicating the crossing for Russian troops and providing a clear line for the work of Ukrainian drones and artillery on the movement of the enemy. Interestingly, the big pipes of this channel too used Russian forces as hidden routes for moving and accumulating before storms – a tactic that was previously observed under Avdiivka and in Kurshchyna.
This fact demonstrates that geographical features are rarely clear for one side. Although the open part of the channel is a convenient target for Ukrainian artillery, its hidden underground elements provide shelter for the Russian infantry. This forces both sides to adapt its tactics to the same locality in different ways, which emphasizes the dynamic and often not obvious nature of combat geography.
Russian troops mainly use infantry assaults, often small groups, trying to bypass or directly storm Ukrainian positions. They also actively use a wide range of technical means, including motorcycles, drones and armored vehicles. The tactics of “burned earth” are obvious in this approach. Despite the huge losses, the attacks last almost continuously.
Ukrainian defense demonstrates significant stability. The Ukrainian military literally “dug into the ground” to withstand daily attacks. They effectively use the channel as a defensive structure, using drones and artillery to damage enemy movements along it. Remote mines are also used.
In parallel, Ukraine raises two fortification lines to the west of the time ravine to complicate the further movement of the enemy. These second lines of fortifications, built during the winter and spring of 2025, include underground storage facilities, access to the railway track and reserve routes to Konstantinovka, making the western part of the time ravine a particularly strong stronghold.
26 bloody months took the Russians in this direction to move 11 km from Bakhmut to the time ravine. How many people died in this path in 11 km – no one knows.
All this indicates that each meter of the territory is obtained by the enemy with an extremely high price. Such slow progress at a relatively short distance, especially after the Bakhmut capture, indicates powerful defense resistance and significant losses for the advancing side. Even with the numerical advantage of the occupiers of the breakthrough Due to the prepared defensive positions in the high altitude, it is extremely complex and expensive, turning the battle into a real “meat grinder” without end.
The consequences of possible occupation
If Russian troops are completely capturing the time of the ravine, it will open several potential directions for further attacks on the Ukrainian “fortress belt”: a number of fortified cities that form the basis of Ukrainian defense positions in Donetsk region. The time of the ravine is regarded as a kind of “gate” to these cities.
First of all, it is about Konstantinovka. Russian troops are about 7-8 kilometers from the northeastern outskirts of Konstantinovka. The capture of the time ravine can make the frontal assault on this city. However, the current efforts of the hostile army seems to be aimed at the surroundings of Konstantinovka from the southwest.
This may testify to the intention to postpone a direct storm until the Russian troops move closer to the city from the south through the Toretsky direction. This approach indicates that the Russian command is not rigidly attached to one direct offensive path. Consideration of the possibility of Konstantinovka’s environment from another direction (Toretsky) indicates an attempt to bypass strong fortifications, to create several directions of attack or to achieve a more favorable tactical position before resorting to a direct assault.
The second threat faces Kramatorsk and Slavyansk. These are the largest cities in the Ukrainian Donbass, which are not yet passionate about the enemy and in which more or less ordinary life continues. Russian troops can try to expand their speech northwest from the time ravine in the direction of Kramatorsk and Slavyansk. The E-40 Bakhmut-Slavic motorway is a potential purpose for creating conditions for attack on the “fortress belt” from the northeast.
Although direct advancement from the time ravine to Kramatorsk and Slavyansk will probably be complicated by a number of tactical water bodies to the west and northwest of the time ravine. In addition, Ukraine actively builds two additional lines of fortifications west of the time ravine.
The existence of several pre -prepared defensive lines of the “fortress belt” means that the fall of the temporal ravine (or rather, the ruins of what was once the city), if it happens, will not lead to the collapse of the entire front. Instead, it will force Russian troops to face new, equally complex defensive positions, which are just designed to absorb and exhaust attack forces over a long period.
This indicates a multilayered defense strategy prepared by the Armed Forces. So even if the residual ravine will be fully captured, ISW analysts believe that the capture of the entire “fortress belt” cannot but be very complicated, bloody and long -term operation.
Summarizing, the time of the ravine remains the field of fierce battles, which is a testament to the protracted and cruel nature of the war. Despite Russia’s statements about the capture, the Ukrainian forces still continue to keep large parts of the city and its environs. The city itself is completely destroyed, it is no longer possible to live there.
Ukrainian defense demonstrates extraordinary stability using a complex relief, including the Siversky Donets-Donbas channel, and quickly building new fortifications. The ability to retain positions and cause significant losses to the attacking forces, despite the prevailing pressure of Russia, is a critical factor in preventing the rapid collapse of the front.
Even if Russian troops will eventually establish full control over the time ravine, their path to key cities – Slavic and Kramatorsk – is far from open. They will face further fortified lines, significant geographical obstacles and decisive Ukrainian defense, which will make any further promotion of many years and very “expensive”.
The battle during the ravine, characterized by extraordinary destruction, slow promotion and very high losses, serves as a striking example of the nature of war in Ukraine, when territorial achievements are relatively small and extremely expensive for the occupier. The result of this campaign in any case will seriously affect the immediate tactical situation, but it is unlikely that a quick and decisive shift in the war for the Donetsk region as a whole.