Fierce battles rage for control of Pokrovsk

Heavy fighting around Pokrovsk has intensified as Russian forces press to seize the last Ukrainian-held parts of Donetsk region, turning the former mining and transport hub into a near-encircled battleground. Strategically located at a crossroads of key roads and rail lines, Pokrovsk is vital for logistics to Ukrainian strongholds such as Sloviansk and Kramatorsk; its capture would threaten supply routes and risk trapping Ukrainian units in nearby pockets.

Analysts say Moscow has employed a pincer advance complemented by small infiltration units and widespread use of unmanned aerial vehicles to disrupt Ukrainian resupply and create a hazardous “grey zone” around the city. Open-source researcher Rob Lee of the Foreign Policy Research Institute described a pattern of Russian tactics — pincer maneuvers followed by harassment by drones and small teams — that has complicated Ukraine’s ability to move troops and materiel, especially where soldiers must travel long distances on foot to reach front-line positions. Lee added that losing Pokrovsk would make withdrawal and extraction from areas south and east of Myrnohrad much more difficult. Still, he stressed Sloviansk and Kramatorsk remain Ukraine’s most critical strongholds in Donetsk, serving as central hubs for command and logistics since 2022.

Civilians have largely fled the city amid relentless shelling, drone and glide-bomb strikes that have damaged homes, hospitals and power infrastructure; humanitarian groups say hundreds may remain trapped with dwindling supplies. Ukrainian officials portray Pokrovsk as both a vital defensive line and a symbol of resistance, while Russia frames control of Donbas — comprising Donetsk and Luhansk provinces — as an objective it has effectively incorporated into its territory, a claim Kyiv and Western governments reject as illegal.

President Vladimir Putin has declared Donbas part of Russia, but Ukraine continues to hold roughly 10% of the Donbas area, concentrated in western Donetsk. Western officials warn that a Russian victory in Pokrovsk would deliver a significant operational and informational win for Moscow after months of limited territorial gains, potentially enabling further advances and strengthening Russia’s hand in any future negotiations. For Ukraine, retaining the city is both a tactical necessity and a signal of continued resilience as the conflict’s eastern front remains fiercely contested.