Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has stated that the defense of Pokrovsk is a priority as elite special forces are deployed to the embattled town on the eastern front line.
Ukrainian army sources reported to the BBC that special forces from military intelligence and assault groups are operationally functioning as regular infantry to protect supply lines crucial for troops holding the town in the Donbas region.
Increasing reports have surfaced of Russian advances around the strategic town west of Donetsk, even as Ukraine has denied claims that its forces are surrounded.
Moscow's objective remains clear: to press Kyiv into ceding the entire Donbas region as part of a peace deal, which includes areas it does not control.
Currently, Russia maintains control over roughly one-fifth of Ukrainian territory, a significant portion of which includes Crimea, annexed in 2014.
The deployment of special forces signifies a determination from Ukrainian officials to retain control of Pokrovsk, a town that has been under threat for over a year.
Reports from local media suggest that Kyrylo Budanov, head of Ukraine's military intelligence, was present in the region to oversee operations personally.
Pokrovsk serves as a key transport and supply hub, and its capture could enhance Russian efforts to take over the remainder of the region.
However, Ukraine also posits that losing Pokrovsk could serve Russia’s interests in demonstrating military success to the US, thereby exerting pressure in negotiations.
Washington has expressed frustration with the Kremlin’s stalled peace talks, leading to US President Donald Trump placing sanctions on Russia's two largest oil producers and canceling a planned summit with President Vladimir Putin.
Zelensky has expressed openness to a ceasefire proposal from Trump, which would cease hostilities along the current front lines, while Russia maintains its position for the Ukrainian military to withdraw from the remainder of Donbas.
In his nightly address, Zelensky emphasized, Pokrovsk is our priority. We continue to destroy the occupier, and that is what matters most... They must be halted where they have reached - and destroyed there.
Images shared with media indicate the usage of a Ukrainian Black Hawk helicopter to deploy troops near Pokrovsk, though verification of the specifics remains elusive.
Russia claimed to have thwarted an operation, stating that all 11 troops who landed by helicopter were neutralized.
According to DeepState, a Ukrainian monitoring group, about half of Pokrovsk is classified as a grey zone, with neither side in complete control.
A military source from Donetsk clarified that Ukrainian forces are not under physical encirclement but are experiencing operational challenges due to Russian fire on supply lines.
The situation in the city has changed to the extent that Command General Syrsky is now deploying elite units into the city to stabilize it, remarked the source.
Fighting has intensified around the railway station and the industrial zone, significantly hindering logistical operations.
The Institute for the Study of War has reported that while Ukrainian forces have made marginal advances in counter-offensive actions north of Pokrovsk, the town predominantly remains a contested grey zone.\
