Pokrovsk, a medium -sized Ukrainian city with disproportionate military importance, It has become the new epicenter of war. Located in the Eastern region of Donetsk, the city has been resisting the Russian attacks almost a year, despite the repeated attempts to capture it through direct attacks. Now, however, Moscow has redoubled its bet.
As recently confirmed by the Ukrainian Head of Defense, Oleksandr Syrskyj, Russia has concentrated about 111,000 soldiers in the vicinity of Pokrovsk, which marks a significant turn in the Kremlin strategy. The Ukrainian high command ensures that, despite this massive concentration of troops, the defensive lines are still firm. “The enemy tries to cross the administrative limits of Donetsk. His assault groups have been rejected ”, Syrskyj pointed out after visiting the front.
The area around Pokrovsk It has become one of the hottest points of 1,200 kilometers in front. More than 50 daily clashes are recorded there, according to Ukrainian authorities. The city not only has a symbolic value: its railway and road infrastructures connect several key logistics centers. His fall could open the way to Russia to deepen his advance in Donetsk.
Although the number of deployed Russian troops seems elevated, experts such as Anders Puck Nielsen, a military analyst at the Danish Academy of Defense, believe it is not crazy. “I am not surprised by the figure, although I am not convinced that it is enough to take Pokrovsk”commented Nielsen, who remembers that similar Russian offensives, such as the Sumy region with 70,000 men, ended without results.
In his attempt to capture Pokrovsk, Russia has left behind frontal attacks, a tactic that failed in cities like Bajmut. Instead, The Russian army now seems focused on surrounding the city from the south and northeasternseeking to gradually weaken the Ukrainian positions.
This change of strategy also responds to wear suffered by Russian forces on other fronts. A Ukrainian surprise operation in the Russian region of Kursk, Last August, he forced the Kremlin to retreat 63,000 Russian soldiers and 7,000 North Korean combatants. According to Syrskyj, that movement relieved pressure in areas such as Pokrovsk and allowed us to regroup Ukrainian forces.
The intensive use of drones by Ukraine has been decisive to stop Russian advances. According to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), Drones defense was key to preventing Russian frontal assault on Pokrovsk. Technology is not only used for attack, but also for surveillance and sabotage.
In the words of Syrskyj, the future of Ukrainian resistance is to maintain superiority in drones and accurately attack the Russian reserves at a distance. He also underlined the need to innovate in the neutralization of Russian recognition drones, using electronic war tools and home -made FPV drones.
Experts such as Emilie Berthelsen, a researcher in military innovation, agree that the current battlefield is dominated by drones. “Today coordinated swarms of drones in air, sea and earth are already used. Development is so fast that it has completely changed the way to fight, ”Berthelsen told Danish media.
Since the large -scale invasion began in 2022, drones have replaced the tank as a symbol of the conflict. According to some reports, Up to 80% of the current Russian casualties are attributed to attacks with these devices. A figure unthinkable at the beginning of the war. Meanwhile, Pokrovsk resists. And in that resistance not only a city is played, but a good part of the military balance of eastern Ukraine.
