Russia scales up offensive from north of Pokrovsk, Ukrainian military says
Russian troops have scaled up their offensives from villages north of Pokrovsk, intensifying efforts to encircle the city and its sister town of Myrnohrad, the 7th Rapid Response Corps reported on Feb. 16.
The 7th Corps report comes as Ukraine clings to its last positions in Pokrovsk and Myrnohrad in eastern Donetsk Oblast, both of which have mostly been occupied by Russia, Emil Kastehelmi, a military analyst with the Black Bird Group, told the Kyiv Independent.
Russian troops are attempting to close in on the Ukrainian-held pocket around Pokrovsk and Myrnohrad, with the Ukrainian open-source mapping project DeepState estimating the gap at about five kilometers (three miles).
By closing in on the remaining Ukrainian logistic routes from the north, Russia is trying to force a complete Ukrainian withdrawal from Pokrovsk and Myrnohrad.
Pokrovsk has long served as a key logistics hub for Ukrainian forces, located at the intersection of major rail and highway routes. In a costly operation that has lasted more than a year, Russia has committed a large number of troops in an effort to capture the city.
The 7th Corps said that, together with other units, its troops are countering Russian efforts by conducting "enhanced" aerial reconnaissance and mining likely assault routes.
Russian troops are also trying to advance in small assault groups from the northwestern part of Pokrovsk to the village of Hryshyne, about eight kilometers (about five miles) northwest of Pokrovsk, according to the 7th Corps.
The Eastern Operational Command said on Feb. 16 that Ukrainian units continue to hold the northern part of Pokrovsk, where fighting is ongoing.
In Myrnohrad, Russia is intensifying pressure on the northern part of the town, attempting to deploy additional heavy weaponry and personnel for "an enveloping maneuver and subsequent assault," the command responsible for the area added.
Ukraine has killed 167 Russian troops and wounded 19 others, in addition to destroying 13 vehicles, 43 drones of various types, 15 Russian shelters and ammunition depots, and a tank, over the past day, the Command reported, citing its preliminary data.
