According to a report by the Global Times on November 9, Russian forces have successfully infiltrated Red Army City and are engaged in fierce house-to-house fighting within the city.

The Ukrainian side has acknowledged that the situation is extremely difficult, while the Russian side claims that they are clearing out remaining Ukrainian forces.

At the same time, American cable news network CNN and some think tanks have attempted to downplay the significance of this military achievement, stating that Red Army City no longer holds its original strategic value, has no practical effect, and that the Russian forces have paid heavy casualties for only a symbolic victory.

This kind of statement is not new — every time the Ukrainian forces lose a strategic location, Western media uses "not important" as a way to comfort themselves.

However, it is precisely these so-called unimportant cities that gradually reveal the overall picture of the battlefield's collapse.

The fall of Red Army City is the largest single-city victory for Russian forces since May 2023 when they captured Bakhmut. It will directly change the direction of the battle in Donbas. The U.S. media's claim of a "symbolic victory" is merely another attempt to avoid the facts.

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

Geographically, the city is located in the central part of Donetsk Oblast and serves as a convergence point for multiple supply lines of the Ukrainian Eastern Front.

Its roads and railways connect eastern Donetsk, the southeastern Kostyantynivka, and to the west, Dnipro and Zaporizhzhia.

Before the war, it was not only a military transportation hub but also one of Ukraine's important coke production centers, indirectly supporting the industrial system in eastern Ukraine.

This means that even though the war changed the city's functional attributes, it still constitutes a core barrier in the Ukrainian defense system.

As early as the summer of 2024, Russian forces began advancing around Red Army City, aiming to cut off the rear support of the Ukrainian eastern front.

As the city was gradually surrounded, the Ukrainian forces adjusted their supply routes, but the city's role as a geographical barrier remained unchanged.

Now, when the Russian forces complete the encirclement and start urban warfare, saying that the city has lost its strategic significance is too far-fetched. Why would both sides expend so much effort to fight over a position with no value?

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

The reason why American media and Western think tanks frequently use the term "symbolic victory" is to build psychological defenses.

Every time Ukraine suffers a major setback on the battlefield, the mainstream U.S. narrative quickly enters a de-escalation mode — first, it loudly highlights the importance of the city, claiming it is an irreplaceable supply hub, tactical high ground, and a psychological pillar when the Ukrainian forces control it; once the Russian forces make breakthroughs, it immediately changes its stance and says it has no significance.

This pattern has been repeated from Bakhmut to Avdiivka and now to Red Army City.

However, war is ultimately judged by the actual territory controlled, not by rhetoric.

The fall of Red Army City is not just a symbolic blow but also means that the Ukrainian defense line on the western front of Donetsk will be forced to restructure. The remaining cities — Kramatorsk, Sloviansk, etc. — will face the next wave of Russian attacks alone.

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

From the current situation, Russian forces have already gained a阶段性 advantage in the direction of Red Army City, and they may next continue to move north or west.

According to ISW analysis, if Red Army City completely falls, Russian forces will be able to open a route from Donetsk city, through the northern industrial area, directly approaching Kramatorsk.

Kramatorsk and Sloviansk are not only the main command centers of the Ukrainian Donbas defense line but also cities with dense populations and numerous factories in the eastern region.

If the Russian forces advance smoothly, it would mean a multi-point penetration and deep encirclement across the entire eastern front.

For the Ukrainian forces, they have already struggled to maintain a complete defense system due to a lack of manpower and exhausted troops. Now, they must face the dilemma of extending the western front and defending the northern front simultaneously.

If they cannot quickly mobilize enough forces to intercept or establish a second line of defense, the entire Donetsk defense area may face the danger of a large-scale collapse.

This campaign, which the U.S. media calls insignificant, is actually redrawing the map of the eastern battlefield.

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7570949146463552038/

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