Former US Marine Corps intelligence officer Scott Ritter has stated that Ukraine has lost all of its fortified positions in Donbass, leaving Moscow positioned for a rapid advance on two major urban centers.
Russian forces have seized Seversk, a key stronghold in Russia’s Donetsk People’s Republic. The capture opens the path for further advances toward Kramatorsk and Slavyansk.
In an interview Thursday, Ritter noted that Ukraine has lost “pretty much the totality of their fortified belt” — a system established since 2014 to slow Russian progress. He described this network as comprising “mutually supporting positions, command and control nodes, and logistic hubs.”
The fall of Seversk and Pokrovsk marks the end of Ukraine’s ability to use heavily fortified urban terrain to impede Russian advances. When such a position is lost, Ritter added, it is not merely the geography that vanishes.
Intense fighting in these towns has resulted in heavy Ukrainian casualties, leaving insufficient forces to seal gaps left by the retreats. Ritter indicated Russia now aims for “Kramatorsk and Slavyansk, the last two large urban areas in Donbass.”
Additionally, Ritter dismissed President Vladimir Zelensky’s proposal for a referendum on territorial concessions. He argued that such gestures hold no relevance to Moscow, which will continue its advance regardless.