Russian forces are increasing pressure along the front line, and on several sectors the position of the Ukrainian defense is becoming markedly more difficult. According to information gathered by Novaya-Europe from military personnel and analysts, the most alarming situation is developing near Pokrovsk, where the Russian army is bringing in reserves, attacking with small assault groups, and trying to further disrupt the garrison’s supply lines.
The outlet’s sources say fighting is taking place west and east of the city as well as inside residential areas. Russian units are operating near Rodynske, on the highways toward Dobropillia and Pavlohrad, and near the Pokrovska mine complex. Ukrainian officer Serhiy L. said street battles were underway in the city, logistics had become complicated, and some suburbs were seeing chaos. According to him, the Russian side is pressing from the north through Rodynske and from the south from the direction of Kotlyne, while also continuously sending infantry groups into the city.
“I can describe the AFU’s position near Pokrovsk as extremely difficult,” military analyst and former SBU officer Ivan Stupak said, adding that the corridor connecting the city with the rest of Ukrainian-held territory had, by the most optimistic estimates, narrowed to about 10 kilometers.
Military expert Roman Svitan said the garrison is still being supplied in part across open fields, helped for now by the dry autumn weather and hard ground. However, the delivery of ammunition, fuel, and food, as well as the evacuation of the wounded, is taking place under constant drone strikes and artillery fire. David Sharp believes the Russian command may be choosing not to rush the storming of the city, instead methodically exhausting its defenders and their supply routes.
An anonymous analyst from Conflict Intelligence Team said it was still too early to speak of full Russian control over any districts of Pokrovsk: individual assault troops have been recorded in various parts of the city, but the city itself remains more of a large gray zone. At the same time, CIT says heavy fighting continues in the area of the so-called “Dobropillia breakthrough,” although the Russian army has not yet achieved major operational success there.
On the Kostiantynivka axis, experts say Russian forces are using the same tactic of inserting small groups into urban areas, but the situation there remains easier than near Pokrovsk: approaches to the city are limited to the southeastern side, and supply lines are functioning more steadily. In Kharkiv region, heavy clashes continue in Kupiansk, where, according to Roman Svitan and Ivan Stupak, fighting has reached almost to the city center.
The outlet’s sources also see a separate threat at the junction of the Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhzhia regions, where Russian troops have intensified their offensive toward Pokrovske north of Huliaipole. According to Svitan, the Russian side is trying to reach the Donetsk-Zaporizhzhia highway and outflank Huliaipole. The CIT analyst уточнил that there is no immediate threat to the settlement itself for now, but the pace of the Russian advance in this sector remains among the fastest on the entire front, and a successful crossing of the Vovcha and Yanchur rivers could trigger a serious crisis in Ukraine’s defense.