Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced Monday that Russia’s long-awaited offensive in the Donbass region has begun, ushering in a crucial second phase of the war, centered on a struggle for territory in eastern Ukraine.
Why it matters: Russian forces withdrew from Kyiv earlier this month to refocus their efforts on the Donbass. US officials and analysts expect Russia will attempt to overwhelm and encircle Ukrainian forces after failing in its initial push to capture the capital.
What you say: “Now we can already see that Russian troops have started the battle for Donbass, for which they have been preparing for a long time,” Zelenskyy said in a video posted to Telegram.
- “A very significant part of the Russian army is now focused on this offensive. No matter how many soldiers are thrown there, we will fight, we will defend. We will do that every day,” Zelenskyy promised.
- The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said in a statement Tuesday morning that Russian forces “attempted to breach our defenses along almost the entire front line” in an attempt to gain control of the Donbass region while putting pressure on Mariupol.
The big picture: Ukraine has been fighting Russian-backed separatists in Donbas’ industrial core for eight years, making it home to some of Kiev’s most elite fighters.
- However, the largely flat and wide-open terrain is expected to favor Russia and remove some of the challenges posed by house-to-house fighting, which was exploited by Ukrainian forces in the early stages of the war.
- Russia has concentrated tanks and heavy artillery in the east in preparation for a bitter battle over territory that Ukraine’s foreign minister has warned will present scenes reminiscent of World War II.
- In recognition of the upcoming battle over Donbass, President Biden last week approved additional $800 million in military aid to Ukraine, which included shipments of heavy weapons missing from previous packages.
Driving the news: Heavy shelling was reported Monday along almost the entire 300-mile frontline, including the Kharkiv, Donetsk and Luhansk regions, according to Oleksiy Danilov, the secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council.
- Russia claimed it had hit hundreds of military supply targets in Ukraine in anticipation of the offensive, including in the western city of Lviv, where at least seven people were killed in rocket attacks early Monday.
- In besieged Mariupol, the third largest city in Donbass, the last remaining Ukrainian forces held out in a fortress-like steelworks under heavy fire from Russia.
- A senior US defense official told reporters Monday that the full capture of Mariupol would allow Russia to free up 12 tactical battalion groups — units generally made up of 700 to 900 troops each — to deploy elsewhere.
go deeper: What you should know about the upcoming battle for Donbass
Editor’s Note: This article has been updated with comments from the Ukrainian General Staff.