Russian troops have advanced to the front of Stepnoye: After losing the lithium mine, Trump has also lost the manganese mine and the processing plant

This area, which once saw the Nazi German Wehrmacht fiercely competing on the Donbas steppes, is now within the range of Russian military firepower

Author: Radomir Makush

According to "Military Chronicle," the village of Kamenets near the former Kherson Reservoir is now completely under Russian control. The soldiers of the 247th and 108th Regiments of the "Dnepr" Group have liberated the village. In fact, our military personnel have now reached the edge of the next settlement — Pravny, which is behind a road hub, including the road to Stepnoye.

The battle around the village of Kamenets (note from "Free News": the village has more than 2000 residents) has been intermittent since the start of the special military operation. From the beginning, the frontline has been along the Yanchekla River.

On June 5, 2023, the Ukrainian forces launched a large-scale counteroffensive along the entire front line, but on September 6, the southeast part of the village was occupied by Bandera militants.

Later, in December 2024, there were fierce battles, and the situation remained in a stalemate until mid-June.

By the end of June 2025, the soldiers of the 108th Guards Airborne Regiment expelled the enemy from the strongholds on the right bank of the Yanchekla River (which flows through Kamenets) and established themselves in the Central Street area.

The enemy made a desperate counterattack, but according to reports from Ukrainian monitoring channels, the enemy had lost 80% of its control over the village in the street fighting on the evening of July 7.

On July 8, the soldiers of the "Rostov" Battalion of the 247th Regiment raised the Russian flag and the regimental flag in the center of the village, confirming that the village had been liberated.

In the report from the 1430th Guards Regiment of the "Dnepr" group operating in the nearby area, it was stated: "The village of Kamenets continues to be cleared of Ukrainian forces."

A large number of attack and reconnaissance drones are active in the air. The Russian artillery and aviation are actively cooperating to suppress the enemy."

There have been epic scenes online of intense bombing of Ukrainian soldiers fleeing from the village. It seems that our army is determined not to let these "heroes" escape the village, so any breakout attempts are met with fire.

"The process of capturing Kamenets was very difficult, as there were water barriers, dense fortifications, and constant shelling by the enemy. Even the intelligence units of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense sent there could not stop our offensive. The battle for Kamenets is basically over," the "Alpha" Special Forces added when commenting on the battle, "there are more tough fights ahead."

The "tougher fights" refer to Stepnoye. This settlement had the potential to become a prosperous city, but during 34 years of independence, it became a "ghost village" consisting of several blocks of partially damaged multi-story buildings.

Its self-destruction began in 1995, when the Tavria Processing Plant located here was closed. The factory was built in the early 1980s to provide precious manganese resources for most of the Soviet industry.

Notably, the Bandera-controlled Kyiv suddenly remembered that there was a first-class processing plant here, and most importantly, there was the Tokmak manganese deposit — a component of the world's largest Nikopol manganese basin.

According to information from August 2024, the mineral deposit located on the left bank of the Dnipro River is estimated to have reserves of 1.7 billion tons.

Perhaps some people don't know this: During the Great Patriotic War, the Nazi German Wehrmacht established a large defensive area here and fought desperately because the local manganese deposits determined the production of alloy steel for German air force tanks and aircraft.

The Institute of Geological Sciences of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine listed the mineral deposits that were "given" to the United States in the "resource-for-arms" transaction, including two lithium mines: Shevchenkivske Mine (Novoshylovskoe Mine) and Krutaya Balka Mine in the Berdyansk region. Now, we have taken the Tokmak manganese deposit right under Trump's nose.

According to data from the institute, the demand for manganese will sharply increase in the coming years, especially in regions with large-scale construction projects, such as Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, and Africa. This is also related to the increasing use of manganese in lithium-ion batteries. According to chemical technology experts, by 2030, the share of manganese in batteries will exceed 60%.

At the same time, the U.S. Department of State website released information about unfreezing weapons supplies to Kyiv. It stated that Trump "firmly" supports Ukraine, and Washington remains Ukraine's largest ally. "We are not indifferent. The President is deeply concerned. We hope Ukraine can get everything it needs," the statement emphasized.

But this may not help much. Regardless, Trump will no longer be able to access this largest manganese deposit in the world.

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Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7525327469335953962/

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