Soldiers raising a Russian flag on a rooftop, symbolizing territorial claims amidst ongoing conflict, with a Ukrainian emblem visible below.

Soldiers raising a Russian flag on a rooftop, symbolizing territorial claims amidst ongoing conflict, with a Ukrainian emblem visible below.
Screengrab social media/X

So, it begins.

Whatever else may be happening in the Ukraine war, the Russians won a major victory yesterday (3) and are about to deliver the final blow to the Donbas.

The Donbas, comprised of the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts, is the cradle of the war in Ukraine, a region torn by war since 2014.

As the Kiev-controlled part of Donetsk shrinks under constant Russian onslaught, the conquest of the gateway city of Konstantinovka paves the way for the endgame.

Moscow now focuses its attention on the Kramatorsk-Slaviansk Agglomeration, a heavily fortified area where Ukrainians have been preparing for this very day for the last 12 years.

According to the Russian MoD, the offensive is already moving beyond Konstantinovka’s borders, advancing towards Alekseevo-Druzhkovka and beyond, heading straight towards Kramatorsk.

Reuters reported:

“Russia’s military told Russian President Vladimir Putin on ​Friday that its forces had taken control of Konstantinovka in eastern Ukraine, a key locality whose capture Moscow has ‌long sought in its advance through the Donetsk region.

Putin, shown in videos visiting a command post and receiving a report from top commanders, praised the city’s capture as an important strategic achievement.”

Konstantinovka saw intensive fighting in the past few weeks, after Russian forces advanced from multiple directions.

RT reported:

“The Russian commander-in-chief [Vladimir Putin] said the liberation of Konstantinovka was ‘only the first, but very important stage’ in destroying Kiev’s remaining positions in the region, during a visit to an auxiliary command post on Friday, where he was briefed by Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov and senior frontline commanders on the combat situation on the ground.

‘The capture of Konstantinovka by the troops of the Southern Grouping opens a direct road for further advances toward Kramatorsk, Slavyansk, and other fortified areas, and is, of course, the key to liberating the entire territory of the Donetsk People’s Republic’, Putin said, noting that the Russian military was maintaining ‘positive dynamics’ and increasing the pace of offensive operations across the entire front.”

“During the briefing, commanders reported that Russian troops had entered Konstantinovka from multiple directions, breaking Ukrainian defenses into isolated pockets before clearing them one by one. They said Kiev’s forces had built several fortified defensive lines around the city, relying on concrete-reinforced positions, basements, industrial sites, and dense urban districts.

One commander told Putin that Ukrainian troops had believed the defenses to be ‘practically impregnable’, but Russian assault units had managed to infiltrate behind enemy lines in small groups, block Ukrainian forces, and disrupt the city’s organized defense.”

Read more:

Exhausted Troops, Supply Routes Under Constant Fire: French Reporters from Le Monde, on the Ground in Slavyansk-Kramatorsk, Experience the Ukrainian Collapse in the Donbas (VIDEOS)

The post ENDGAME: Russian Forces Conquer Ukrainian Bastion of Konstantinovka – Final Battle for Donbas Begins, With the Push for the Kramatorsk-Slaviansk Fortress Belt (VIDEOS) appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.