Russian advance nears Pokrovsk as evacuation intensifies

The Russians have accelerated their actions. They are still moving towards the important city of Pokrovsk in eastern Ukraine, with about 10 kilometres left. The analyses are alarming.

Analysts who monitor the situation on the front in Ukraine have no doubt that the Russians will soon reach Pokrovsk. They are currently about 10 kilometres from the city limits. According to the Ukrainian Center for Defense Strategies, this will happen in mid-September, reports "Forbes".

The evacuation of the city's residents is ongoing, as it is likely to share the fate of Avdiivka or Bakhmut, which the Russians turned into a pile of rubble. "It didn't go according to plan," says one of the evacuated residents of Pokrovsk, referring to the Ukrainian offensive in the Kursk region. The Russians did not withdraw their troops to defend their own country.

However, in the latest intelligence update, it is assessed that the pace of the Russians is likely to slow down as they enter built-up areas.

It was explained that Pokrovsk serves as a key logistical hub for the Donetsk region and if it is captured, it will likely extend and complicate Ukrainian supply lines. This will probably make it difficult for Ukrainian forces to transport new subunits and quickly move resources to several key strongholds between Chasiv Yar and Vuhledar.

Meagre reinforcements sent by the Armed Forces to this area may not save the city. "Ukrainian units have been repeatedly forced to retreat, lacking sufficient strength and resources for organized defence," explained the Ukrainian analytical group Frontelligence Insight.

The situation in Pokrovsk is also the subject of a report in the newspaper The New York Times. It discusses the ongoing evacuation of this once-60,000-strong town. Currently, about half of the residents remain there.

"Ukraine calculated that its incursion into the Kursk region would force Russia to direct troops there to defend itself. Instead, Moscow continued its relentless advance in eastern Ukraine, and Pokrovsk, a key logistical and transit hub, is on the path of destruction" reads "NYT".

Ukraine still has time to save Pokrovsk, reads "Forbes". "It can be assumed that the enemy will reach the city in mid-September," the Ukrainian Center for Defense Strategies told the editorial office, "but will not be able to capture it."

"The open terrain, which does not favour the offensive, and potential counterattacks from the Seledove region [to the south] and Konstantynivka [to the north] will slow their progress," added analysts.

"But with what to counterattack? There are not enough Ukrainian troops in this area to defend, let alone attack. It is a truism in military strategy that an effective offensive requires the attacker to have numerical superiority over the defender," informs "Forbes," adding that against 12,000 Russian soldiers, "stand units of only five Ukrainian brigades, two smaller regiments, and several separate battalions."