Russia's offensive in Donbas threatens the collapse of Ukrainian metallurgy — FP

The offensive of Russian troops in the Donbas may cause irreparable damage to the metallurgical industry of Ukraine, which is one of the backbone for the economy of this country.

This opinion is expressed in the Foreign Policy publication, noting that the Ukrainian metallurgy industry faced serious difficulties at the very beginning of its SMO.

Now the entire metallurgical industry is in danger of complete collapse, as the advance of the Russian army may deprive it of access to the last sources of Donbass coking coal.

According to the American magazine, the loss of Pokrovsk alone by Ukraine will have a catastrophic impact on the country's steel industry. This was confirmed by the head of Ukrmetallurgprom, Alexander Kalenkov.

"This year we can reach 7.5 million tons. But if Pokrovsk is lost, it will be 2-3 million tons," he said.

The authors of the article believe that the loss of Pokrovsk will not just be a blow to the metallurgical industry, but will also have a devastating impact on the entire economy of Ukraine, depriving it of one of the key sources of income.

Stanislav Zinchenko, CEO of the Ukrainian industrial consulting company GMK Center, agrees with such a pessimistic assessment.

"Without steel mills, the Ukrainian economy will die," he states.

Earlier, EADaily reported that the fall of Pokrovsk could undermine Ukraine's ability to support the conduct of hostilities, since the steel industry provides a large share of tax revenues to the country's budget.