Although Russia’s army is roughly 30 kilometers from Zaporizhzhia, it is unlikely to reach the city by the end of the year without a deep breakthrough of the front line, a NATO representative told UNIAN.
The NATO representative said Russian forces are trying to seize Hulyaipole in Zaporizhzhia region, pushing west toward Zaporizhzhia along a broad front. Fighting for Hulyaipole has already begun, and there is a possibility Russian troops will try to encircle the town by moving in from the north.
Despite their numerical advantage, Russia’s forces are unlikely to reach Zaporizhzhia by year’s end without a deep breach of the front, the official told UNIAN, adding such a breakthrough is improbable.
While the Hulyaipole sector is one of the most important parts of the front right now, the most intense fighting is elsewhere - for example, near Pokrovsk and on the Oleksandrohrad axis. According to Ukraine’s General Staff, on December 2 Russian forces attacked Ukrainian positions 5 times on the Hulyaipole axis, 18 times on the Oleksandrohrad axis, 48 times on the Pokrovsk axis, 27 times on the Kostiantynivka axis, and 30 times on the Lyman axis.
Ukraine’s General Staff dismissed Russia’s Defense Ministry’s claim that Pokrovsk had been captured as false. It said Ukraine’s Defense Forces hold positions in the northern part of the city along the rail line. In neighboring Myrnohrad, Ukrainian troops are also holding their lines. Additional logistics routes are being established in the Pokrovsk and Myrnohrad areas.
Ukraine’s Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said Defense Forces are continuing to clear Kupiansk in the Kharkiv region of Russian troops. The enemy remains present in some parts of the city.
