It is claimed that every day, no fewer than 50 combat clashes take place here.
As Ukrainian soldier and platoon commander of the 24th Separate Assault Battalion "Aidar", Stanislav "Osman" Buniatov posted on Telegram last month: "Overall, enemy activity is high along the entire line, from Bahatyr to the Kostiantynivka pocket. Southwest of Kostiantynivka, the enemy made advances due to the low combat readiness of our personnel, poor coordination, and the low capabilities of strike UAV units responsible for this sector".
In fact, one Ukrainian analyst had warned that if Kiev were to lose Pokrovsk, "the entire frontline will crumble".
Pokrovsk is a strategic target for Moscow. Russian President Vladimir Putin has made it clear that his goal is to seize all of the eastern Ukrainian regions of Donetsk and Luhansk his forces partially occupy.
Although not a major city, Pokrovsk sits on a key supply road and railroad that connect it with other military hubs in the area. Together with Kostiantynivka, Kramatorsk and Sloviansk, it forms the backbone of Ukrainian defenses in the part of Donetsk region that is still under Kiev’s control.
The Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a US-based conflict monitor, had claimed late last year that Ukrainian defensive operations in Pokrovsk have forced Russia to abandon its original plan to take over Pokrovsk in a frontal assault.
I don't know about that but it is obvious that Russia is bidding its time.
Elsewhere, Russian forces steadily advance deeper into Ukrainian territory.
On Friday (Day 1220), Russia's MOD tallied destroyed Ukrainian assets since the start of the Special Military Operation as 663 Ukrainian warplanes, 283 helicopters, 65,806 unmanned aerial vehicles, 612 surface-to-air missile systems, 24,059 tanks and other armored combat vehicles, 1,572 multiple rocket launchers, 26,656 field artillery guns and mortars and 37,365 special military motor vehicles. As per TASS news agency.
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