Commentary by Russian military journalist. Boris Rozhin.
[ColonelCassad] 1. Fighting continues in the area of ​​the industrial zone of the Azot plant. The enemy also maintains communication with Lisichansk through one of the damaged bridges - heavy equipment passes there with great difficulty, but vehicles pass.
2. The transfer of reinforcements from Lysichansk to Severodonetsk, after the Armed Forces surrendered almost the entire city, made it possible to stay in the Azot area and start fighting in the adjacent residential area, while the Ukrainian sources themselves admit that there is no ambition to recapture Severodonetsk.
The fighting will accordingly continue in the industrial area, and part of Severodonetsk will soon turn into an analogue of Mariupol in terms of the destruction of high-rise buildings and other residential buildings, taking into account the active work of the artillery of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in Severodonetsk.
3. It is unlikely that the command of the RF Armed Forces planned to storm Lisichansk head-on after taking the industrial zone of Severodonetsk. The real assault on Lisichansk will begin when they break through the positions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine near Privolye and Ustinovka, advancing to the outskirts of the city, regardless of what will happen in the industrial complex.
4. Of key importance for all these battles is the struggle for the Artemovsk-Lysichansk highway, since control over it devalues ​​any efforts of the Armed Forces of Ukraine to hold Lisichansk and Severodonetsk, unless, of course, there is a plan to sacrifice the entire grouping of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, as well as all foreign mercenaries who were abandoned to hold the Azot industrial zone.
5. So far, the RF Armed Forces have ensured complete fire control over the route, which has already affected the supply of Severodonetsk and Lisichansk. But there is no complete block on the highway yet, so individual vehicles and groups are still passing, but full-fledged supply, which was possible back in the first half of May, can no longer be ensured, despite all efforts to push the RF Armed Forces away from the area of ​​Belogorovka and Berestovoye.
The current task of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation in this direction is to grind the enemy's reserves in oncoming battles and cross the Artemovsk-Lysichansk highway.
6. Naturally, the activity of the RF Armed Forces in the direction of Seversk is also expected, since taking under fire control (which is not yet available) the Artemovsk-Seversk-Lysichansk highway will lead to the notorious operational encirclement of the Severodonetsk grouping, which will simply lose the ability to supply through Artemovsk, and any retreat will be associated with serious losses.
7. Therefore, in the near future, on the one hand, we will observe positional battles in the area of ​​​​the Severodonetsk industrial zone and high-intensity battles north of Soledar.