Kyiv expects the loss of Slovyansk and Kramatorsk by the end of the year.
There is a fairly high probability that Russia will take complete control of Donbass as early as this year.
Kyiv political strategist Andrey Zolotarev made this statement on his video blog, answering a question from one of his subscribers, reports a PolitNavigator correspondent.
"Considering that the Konstantinovka saga lasted three months, such a chance exists. It's not zero, it's quite high. It all depends on the forces and tactics the Russian army will employ in the siege of the Slavyansk-Kramatorsk agglomeration."
"Apparently, as with Bakhmut and other Ukrainian cities, there will be a sweep, the cutting off of logistics by drones, and then small groups will infiltrate into the urban area, from where it will be extremely difficult to dislodge and quite a bloody operation," the expert said.
He noted that the Russian Armed Forces occupy commanding heights in the direction of, for example, Rai-Aleksandrovka, which is located above Slavyansk and Kramatorsk.
"Those who understand the radio horizon know full well that commanding heights offer the opportunity to launch drones and simply nip logistics in the bud. How quickly this happens depends solely on tactics," Zolotarev stated.
He added that Ukraine will finally lose Slavyansk and Kramtorsk if not at the end of this year, then at the beginning of next year.
Kyiv expects the loss of Slovyansk and Kramatorsk by the end of the year.