War in Ukraine: Chassiv Yar is in Russian hands, why this city is so important in the battle for Donbass ?

Des soldats de l'armée ukrainienne dans une tranchée dans l'oblast de Donetsk le 28 janvier 2025. MAXPPP – Madeleine Kelly

Depuis quelques jours, Tchassiv Yar est tombé aux mains des hommes de Vladimir Poutine. La chute de la ville est une perte considérable pour l’armée ukrainienne.

A few days ago, several Ukrainian government and military sources confirmed to the Moscow Times the fall of the city of Chassiv Yar, located in the Donetsk Oblast (Donbass). The fighting between the Russian and Ukrainian armies had been raging for almost a year.

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A strategic city

Since the fall of Bakhmut, Chassiv Yar has become a major interest for both countries. But why is it that ? If before the war the town had only 12,000 inhabitants, this city located in eastern Ukraine is a real strategic stronghold. The city is perched on top of a hill, which allows soldiers to have “the highest point in the entire front zone”, says the magazine Géo.

With such a geographical position, the city is easily defensible. It is possible to target the logistics and supply routes that feed the enemy positions. Chassiv Yar is also the last bastion before the large cities, still under Ukrainian control, of Kramatorsk, Sloviansk, Kostyantynivka and Druzhkivka.

If Russian breakthroughs continue in 2025 in this area of ​​Volodymyr Zelensky's country, the Donbass region could be controlled by the Russian army, which would be a major turning point in the conflict.

Indeed, in this region, the war did not begin in 2022, when Putin's “special military operation” was launched, but in 2014, with a division within the population itself. On one side, residents wanting to follow the Ukrainian regime, and others wanting Russian authority.

The battle continues in Kursk

While discussions between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump are delayed, the Russians are gradually gaining ground in the east of the country with the yellow and blue flag. However, the Kremlin’s armed forces are struggling to reclaim the area where the Ukrainian incursion into Russian soil took place last August: the Kursk Oblast.

Read also: Ceasefire, armament, aid… what impact could Donald Trump’s return to the White House have on the war in Ukraine ?

The war in Ukraine is about to celebrate its sad third anniversary in a few weeks and peace does not seem to be an option for Vladimir Putin any time soon.