Since the outbreak of war in the Donbas in 2014, Ukraine has invested heavily in fortifying the northwestern region of the Donetsk Oblast, creating what is known as the “Fortress Belt.” Russia has attempted to seize this region in multiple offensives, but the Institute for the Study of War assesses that doing so would require at least two more years of costly fighting at current rates of advance.
For this reason, Russia has made a concerted effort to force Ukraine to cede the Fortress Belt at the negotiating table. Conceding this would allow Russia to occupy additional economically and operationally important territory, creating a springboard from which Russia can attempt to seize the major Ukrainian cities of Kharkiv and Dnipro.
This briefing examines the importance of the Fortress Belt to Ukraine’s defense and the rationale behind Russia’s desperation to occupy the region.
