Bagmouth is located in the Donbass at the center of a triangle between the cities of Donetsk (south), Kramatorsk-Slovyansk (northwest) and Severodonetsk (northeast). Kramatorsk, a strategic rail hub, remains in Ukrainian hands. Severodonetsk is occupied by the Russian army after a bitter and deadly battle. Bakhmaut is a conglomerate in the industrial region of the Donbass, consisting of cities of 70 – 100,000 inhabitants born of the Industrial Revolution. Many cities in this region of eastern Ukraine specialized in one type of industry. In Bakhmout’s case, it’s salt extraction. And it has been around since the 17th century. White gold, a staple of the local economy, is in its inner suburbs, as is its neighbor Soledar (literally “Salt City”), a city surrendered to the Russians at the end of January. For other cities, we can mention Kativka (“Stakhanov” in Russian) and its coal (Stakhanov was a famous worker in the mines), steel industry (railway) for Mariupol, chemical industry for Luhansk and Donetsk; Agricultural equipment in Melitopol, coke ovens in Sloviansk; Cables in Berdyansk; Automobile in Zapporijjia; Or further west, Tashawa and its natural gas.
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