The mud of the Donbas has dried, but both Russia and Ukraine may still be stuck – The Telegraph

They reveal the same cross-section of local geology familiar from the winter war; but now, the fertile black topsoil is baked dry, and the ochre clay beneath it is rock hard.

In theory, this is the moment Russia's offensive has been waiting for.

Tanks and other vehicles that were confined to tarmac roads should now be able to roam free, making the most of their mobility and the range of their cannons on the undulating, open fields of the Donbas. Infantry can walk and run without their boots becoming stuck in a sucking quagmire.

But as the seasons have turned, so has the tide of the war.

While Russia's grand offensive in Donbas has made painfully slow progress, Ukraine has made significant advances with its own counter-offensive around Kharkiv.

As Ukrainian confidence grows, there is an unspoken expectation - perhaps premature and too optimistic - that it could be Ukrainian tanks, not Russian ones, raising dust as they sweep across the plains this summer.

But there are a number of factors preventing the Russians from exploiting the good weather that could prove equally challenging for the Ukrainians.

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The mud of the Donbas has dried, but both Russia and Ukraine may still be stuck - The Telegraph