At one point this fall, there were no Ukrainian troops in Pokrovsk due to “limited capabilities,” Ukraine’s Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said. But since mid-November, Ukrainian forces have pushed back and retaken significant ground inside the city, he added during a December 9 briefing with media, according to Suspilne.
“At a certain stage in the autumn, there were no Ukrainian troops in Pokrovsk due to limited capabilities. However, from November 15, thanks to our offensive actions, we were able to take control of about 13 square kilometers within Pokrovsk (out of the city’s total area of 29 square kilometers),” Syrskyi said.
Ukrainian forces now hold the northern part of Pokrovsk and some territory to the west of the city. “West of Pokrovsk, we have cleared and control about 54 square kilometers,” the commander-in-chief said.
Syrskyi described the Pokrovsk axis as “the main theater of operations,” saying Russian troops are using poor weather to advance and avoid Ukrainian drones. He said Russia has built up its forces there to 156,000 personnel and is directing roughly half of its guided aerial bombs (KAB) at this sector.
Despite the pressure, Ukraine is reinforcing its presence around Pokrovsk. Syrskyi said he ordered troops to withdraw from positions 5–7 kilometers from the city that could no longer be held. “These were positions we could no longer rotate and the enemy was seeping past them. Keeping them made no sense. We must preserve the lives of our servicemembers,” he said.
On nearby Myrnohrad, Syrskyi said the city is not encircled. Logistics remain difficult, but Ukraine’s Defense Forces continue supply operations.
On December 9, fighters from the “Skala” unit showed they were still defending positions in Pokrovsk in an interview with the BBC.
A day earlier, analysts at DeepState said Russian forces had captured five settlements along the Pokrovsk axis.
