Ukraine is evacuating children from one of the main cities it still controls in Donbas. Russian forces, 20 kilometers from Sloviansk
Ukrainian authorities announced that they had begun the mandatory evacuation of children from the most attacked areas of Sloviansk, one of the main cities still under Ukrainian control in the Donbas region, in what Reuters described as a sign that the security situation in the area is deteriorating.
Governor Vadim Filashkin wrote on Telegram that he signed an order “for the mandatory evacuation of children from certain areas of Sloviansk that are most vulnerable to enemy attacks.”
Russian forces have been slowly advancing north and east of Sloviansk, and are currently about 20 kilometers from the city's edge at various points on the front.
Ukrainian “belt of fortresses” in Donetsk
The town of Sloviansk is one of the towns that Ukraine still controls in Donetsk, in an urban “belt of fortresses”.
Ukraine, which still controls just under a quarter of Donetsk, claims that that “belt of fortresses” can help it defend the region for years.
However, the danger zones in frontline regions have expanded over the course of the war, as the increasing number of drones and their increasing range have made places 10 or even 20 kilometers from the frontline itself increasingly lethal.
Donetsk is part of Donbas, a region known for its coal mines and heavy industry, which Moscow considers its key military objective.
