Russia throws thousands of troops to capture Chasiv Yar. Why is it so important?

As the U.S. took months to approve the next package of much-needed military aid to Kyiv, Russia used the moment to step up its offensive operations in Ukraine. After capturing Avdiivka and multiple villages in the east, Moscow now has its eyes on the next primary target, the town of Chasiv Yar.

Outgunned and outnumbered, Ukrainian troops are fighting against an over 20,000 Russian grouping to defend the strategically important town.

Russia has already reached the eastern outskirts of Chasiv Yar. According to Ukrainian officials, Russian forces are set to double down their assaults to seize the town before May 9, a heavily militarized holiday marking the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany in World War II.

The capture of Chasiv Yar would make it easier for Russia to launch a broader offensive in Donetsk Oblast, a Ukrainian region that has been the scene of the heaviest fighting of the war since 2014. About half of Donetsk Oblast, including the regional capital, is currently under Moscow's control.

History of Chasiv Yar

Chasiv Yar lies in the industrial region of Donbas, which comprises Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts. Its historical roots trace back to 1876, at the time of the Russian Empire, when a Russian nobleman established a factory to produce refractory materials from the abundant clay found in the area.

Originally known as Hruzke or Pleshcheieve, the settlement emerged around the industries of fire clay and other reinforced materials and gained city status in 1938, already under the Soviet regime.

Chasiv Yar stands on hills that serve as natural defensive structures. The town boasts the highest point in the area and is divided in the east by the Siverskyi Donets-Donbas canal, creating a barrier between the Kanal micro-district and the rest of the town.

"Similar areas are rare in this direction. Keeping the Russians at Chasiv Yar helps Ukraine to limit the damages to various other cities," Emil Kastehelmi, an OSINT analyst with the Finland-based Black Bird Group and military history expert, told the Kyiv Independent.

Chasiv Yar's beneficial location and terrain explain why Ukraine made it one of its strongholds during Russia's initial invasion of the Donbas in 2014. The town hosted a key military hospital and later served as the headquarters for the Joint Forces Operation (formerly the Anti-Terrorist Operation, as Ukraine initially termed its military campaign against Russian aggression).

Despite Russia's short-lived occupation of Bakhmut, less than 10 kilometers to the east, Chasiv Yar remained largely unscathed until the onset of the full-scale invasion.

Chasiv Yar during full-scale war

When Russia started its all-out war against Ukraine in February 2022, Chasiv Yar became a frequent target of devastating attacks. Russia’s missile strike on Chasiv Yar on July 9, 2022, killed 48 people, including a nine-year-old boy, according to local authorities

Constant danger and destruction of civilian infrastructure forced most locals to leave, with the town’s population shrinking from around 12,000 to nearly 700 as of early April, Serhii Chaus, the head of the town’s military administration, told BBC Ukraine.

As the situation deteriorated, all remaining children were evacuated from Chasiv Yar by the Ukrainian authorities last year, leaving behind mostly elderly residents, unwilling or unable to leave. Enduring dire conditions without access to power, water, or gas, they face constant shelling, which has critically damaged 80% of apartment buildings, according to Chaus.

Ukraine’s military has used Chasiv Yar as a regrouping hub and a fire support base. The town was especially important to support Ukrainian troops in Bakhmut, the city Russia eventually captured in May 2023 after a 10-month-long battle, the bloodiest in the war.

Current situation in Chasiv Yar

As of April 26, Ukraine fully controls Chasiv Yar, but the situation in the area remains increasingly challenging. Russia has recently intensified its assaults east of Chasiv Yar "in an effort to take advantage of the limited window before U.S. security assistance arrives in Ukraine," the DC-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said in a recent update.

After months of political infighting, the U.S. Congress finally passed the crucial foreign aid package, which includes almost $61 billion for Ukraine. With President Joe Biden signing the bill on April 24, the Pentagon swiftly announced the next package of weapons from U.S. stockpiles.

Russia reportedly fires 10 times more shells than Ukraine and uses its air superiority to level Ukrainian positions with glide bombs. But beyond the scarcity of supplies, Ukraine’s problems across the front line include delays in fortification construction and the manpower shortage due to the delayed mobilization.

Taking Chasiv Yar is crucial for Russia's larger offensive in the east, anticipated in May or June, with the deployment of elite Russian airborne troops in the area underscoring the town's significance for Moscow's strategic objectives.

“They can try to start concentrating an excessive amount of close air support and artillery in the area, try to spend more equipment and men in hopes of achieving success, and they could also try flanking maneuvers. However, the Ukrainian fortifications, terrain, and the canal limit the way how mechanized units can be used,” according to Kastehelmi.

If Russia captures Chasiv Yar, it will gain fire control over key Ukrainian supply routes in the area. This may seriously endanger the cities of Kostiantynivka, Druzhkivka, Kramatorsk, and Sloviansk, the last Ukrainian strongholds in Donetsk Oblast, a Ukrainian military spokesperson told Politico on April 16.

"Developments like these would also challenge Ukraine's publicly announced goals of liberating all occupied territories," according to Kastehelmi.

Note from the author:

Hi, this is Dinara Khalilova, the author of this article.  I hope it brought you more clarity on why Russia has made Chasiv Yar its next major goal on Ukraine’s battlefield. To continue reporting on the most important developments of the war, we need your support. Please consider becoming a member of the Kyiv Independent community.

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