ISW: Russia unlikely to rebuild battlefield losses and create strategic reserves at the same time
Only a fraction of Moscow’s planned new units were actually formed, and those divisions appear undermanned and under-equipped.
Browsing Tag
fortress belt
13 posts
ISW: Russian milbloggers finally admit Ukraine’s gains in Kupiansk sector and accuse military of misleading the top leadership (MAPS)
Commanders are said to tailor reports to satisfy superiors, creating a self-destructive feedback loop.
ISW: Russia’s top general promises fast victory — but even his boasts prove the opposite
Belousov insists the Fortress Belt is key to a rapid takeover, yet even his own timeline suggests years of grinding warfare.
ISW: Russia’s army can’t sustain multi-pronged offensives due to manpower and equipment strain
A push toward Ukraine’s heavily fortified Fortress Belt would force Moscow to drain even more troops and equipment.
Putin claims Russia seized Pokrovsk — ISW finds no sign of that (MAP)
The think tank's latest assessment says there is no evidence confirming the complete Russian seizure of Pokrovsk.
ISW: Russia’s rate of advance “does not indicate that Russian forces will imminently seize the rest of Donetsk Oblast”
The Kremlin’s belief in inevitable victory ignores battlefield realities where major cities remain out of reach.
ISW: Russia overstates gains to pressure Kyiv and West to hand over Donetsk Oblast
Russian forces have not yet faced heavily fortified cities like Slovyansk and Kramatorsk, ISW notes.
ISW: Trump’s reported peace plan is “fundamentally the same as Russia’s 2022 Istanbul demands”
The proposed deal would give Russia vital Ukrainian territory and allow it to conserve resources for future aggression, according to ISW.
ISW: Russian forces try to apply Pokrovsk-style tactics in Siversk and Lyman against Ukraine’s Fortress Belt
The Kremlin is using a mix of weather-aided raids, artillery-coordinated drones, and forward infiltration near key defense axes.
So you think Ukraine can just leave Donbas? It’s the shield forged in steel — and paid in blood
The Donbas fortress belt has held for years against Russia’s army. Surrendering it would open the road west.
ISW: Give up your fortress belt shield, take nothing in return—Putin’s ceasefire pitch to Ukraine
ISW says Russia lacks the means to capture the fortress belt in Donetsk Oblast, so it wants Ukraine to abandon it.
ISW: Russia halts Kostiantynivka push—now Pokrovsk braces for encirclement threat
After weeks of stalled operations in eastern Ukraine's Donetsk Oblast, Russian forces are closing in on Pokrovsk from several axes.
ISW: Russia may trade deep breakthrough attempts for slow envelopment around fortress belt in Donetsk Oblast
Recent gains northeast of Pokrovsk signal a tactical priority shift, aiming at a tactical restraint designed to force Ukrainian withdrawals, says ISW.