The Institute for the Study of War said in its latest assessment that Russian forces will resume the offensive in Donetsk Oblast in the next few weeks once additional mobilized Russian troops and forces withdrawn from Kherson arrive.
According to the ISW, Ukrainian forces in Donetsk Oblast "will find themselves hard-pressed," and Ukraine will likely have to redeploy some troops to defend against the offensive operations.
"The Russians are not likely to make operationally significant gains despite their renewed efforts, although they could conceivably take Bakhmut over time at enormous cost," the ISW writes.
The U.S. think tank notes that Russian mobilized troops "have shown themselves inadequately trained, poorly equipped, and very reluctant to fight."