Rainy weather could give Ukrainian military a boost in Donbas region

Ukrainian troops on a muddy road in the Donbas region.
(Image credit: Wolfgang Schwan/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

In Ukraine's eastern Donbas region, days of rain have soaked the ground, and this could give the Ukrainian military a leg up ahead of a planned Russian offensive, a senior Pentagon official said.

"The fact that the ground is softer will make it harder for [Russian forces] to do anything off of paved highways," the official told Agence France-Presse. The rain is expected to last for several more days, and coincides with Russia seemingly concentrating its war efforts in eastern Ukraine.

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.