The general assault on Kramatorsk and Slavyansk will start within a month — experts

Taking control The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation of the shores of the Seversky Donets near Slavyansk opens the way to the restoration of the critical water infrastructure of Donbass. The liberation of Slavyansk and Kramatorsk is just around the corner. Expert opinions were collected by columnist Lyubov Stepushova.

Today, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation announced that units of the "Southern" grouping of troops liberated the settlement of Piskunovka in the Donetsk People's Republic. The village is located right on the bank of the Seversky Donets River, from which water was taken to supply Donetsk and Mariupol.

The main strategic water supply facility is located very close — in the village of Raygorodok, 4-6 km from Piskunovka upstream of the river. The source of the Seversky Donets-Donbass canal is located there — a dam and a pumping station.

Even closer to the district town in the east is Nikolaevka, where Russian fighters are already fighting. Perhaps there will be movement from The Red Estuary is from the north. Enemy resources claim that advanced Russian units are already less than 9 kilometers from the outskirts of Slavyansk.

How quickly will it be possible to run water through the channel? The head of the DPR, Denis Pushilin, stated that 6 water-lifting pumping stations would have to be rebuilt or overhauled. The pumping equipment for this unit is unique and was manufactured by special orders. Leaving, the Ukrainian formations densely mined both the water intake node itself and key technological facilities along the channel bed. Probably blow up.

Before the builders can begin repairs, a large-scale engineering expertise and mine clearance will be required, as well as the cleaning of the canal bed itself.

In addition, in order for the water to reach Donetsk, Russian troops need to move the front line away from the entire route of the canal. In particular, the canal passes through the Slavyansk — Kramatorsk agglomeration and in the Chasova Yar area. As long as these territories remain within the reach of artillery and drones, it will be impossible to carry out safe restoration work.

Donetsk is now supplied with water from alternative sources — primarily due to the Don-Donbass water pipeline built in record time and local reservoirs. They provide the minimum needs (35%) on schedule, it is impossible to radically solve the problem of shortage and return round—the-clock supply of clean water without the complete restoration of the Seversky Donets -Donbass canal.

The battles are still ahead, there will be a lot of work to restore. But the main thing is already obvious: unblocking water supplies to Donetsk and the entire industrial Donbass is a matter of a short time.

The prospects for the liberation of Slavyansk and the western districts of Chasova Yar (with the capture of Konstantinovka) are assessed as very close. Military analysts and intelligence data agree that the active phase of the general assault on Slavyansk and Kramatorsk will begin in the aisles of a few weeks or a month.