Russian forces are gradually encircling Pokrovsk, a vital Ukrainian logistics center in the east, threatening to cut off crucial supply lines as the war approaches its third year, Reuters reports.

The city’s potential fall would give Moscow control over a critical railway junction and highway intersection, enabling potential advances into Dnipropetrovsk Oblast and strengthening Russia’s position in any future peace negotiations.

Life in Pokrovsk has become increasingly dire, with only 7,000 residents remaining from a pre-war population of 60,000. The last post office has closed, forcing mail deliveries by armored truck. Russian forces have established positions within artillery and drone range of a crucial east-west highway while also reaching the main rail line connecting the city to Dnipro, eastern Ukraine’s primary logistics hub.

“The situation is generally difficult. The enemy is constantly attacking on foot,” reports Phoenix, deputy commander of Ukraine’s 59th assault brigade.

He described how Russian forces are using small infantry groups willing to take heavy casualties while exploiting terrain and weather conditions to avoid drone detection.

“Day and night, they are moving forward,” he said.

Military analysts note a significant shift in Russian tactics around Pokrovsk.

“It seems that, perhaps for the first time, they have started to spare their manpower,” says Viktor Trehubov, a Ukrainian military spokesman.

He explained that Russians are attempting to bypass and surround the city rather than launching costly frontal assaults.

Michael Kofman, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, warns that Pokrovsk’s capture could serve as a staging ground for Russian forces to push either north or west.

“They can then move up their own logistics, enabling them to push further west,” he said.

In response to the growing threat, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has appointed land forces chief Mykhailo Drapatyi to oversee the strategic command of the region. However, Ukraine faces significant challenges in defending the area, with analysts pointing to manpower shortages and recruitment issues affecting their ability to counter Russian small-unit tactics effectively.

“Ukrainian units are simply running out of infantry,” notes Pasi Paroinen, an analyst with the Finland-based Black Bird Group.

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