Donbas fields have frozen over, but for now the ceasefire holds
One year ago, bloody battles raged throughout the eastern Ukrainian region of Donbas. The traditional autumn “rasputitsa” (mud season) usually ends by January: The dirt freezes, allowing trucks, troops and heavy military equipment to maneuver through fields and use unpaved roads. By mid-January 2015, the Donbas separatist forces – armed, trained, led and often reinforced in battle by the Russian military – began a major offensive to capture the main terminal building of the Donetsk international airport, which was the scene of many months of pitched fighting. The joint Russian-separatist forces also attacked the crossroads town of Debaltseve, northeast of Donetsk, which had been held by Ukrainian troops deep inside separatist-controlled territory. By February 18, 2015, both military objectives were secured: the Ukrainian forces were defeated and fell back after suffering heavy losses.
