As the president celebrates, the economic crisis deepened by a coronavirus outbreak he has refused to acknowledge has left his people in a state of Dickensian misery.
The new fighting was an early test for the Russian peacekeeping mission as it tries to manage a new, ambiguous de facto border that passes through populated areas.
The public is livid that the government has been so hapless in prepping for the heating season. The response from officials has been to dissemble or threaten those who try to report on the situation.