The Russian Federation has concentrated over 100 thousand military personnel near Pokrovsk to make this city a focal point in its winter campaign. This information is provided by 'Glavkom' referring to Bloomberg.
Experts point out that even if the city is captured, it will not change the course of the war. After Bakhmut and Avdiivka, Russian troops are eager to continue their path to Pokrovsk, an important transport and industrial hub in Donetsk region. The city has railway connections and access to roads leading to Dnipropetrovsk region, so the Kremlin sees it as the next 'symbolic victory.'
'The question is not whether Pokrovsk will fall, but what it will mean for the war,' emphasized columnist Mark Champion.
According to analysts, the Russian leadership needs a public 'victory' before winter to support its own propaganda and lift the morale of the Russian society, which is tired of the prolonged war.
Otherwise, even control over Pokrovsk will not allow Russia to break through the Ukrainian defense in the east. Over three years of war, Russian troops have moved less than 50 km - from Avdiivka to Pokrovsk, and these achievements have come at the cost of hundreds of thousands of casualties.
It is important for the Russians to achieve a public victory over Ukraine to regain their morale and increase support for the war among their own people. Although Pokrovsk itself is not a strategically important city, its Russian occupation could have significant symbolic implications for the conflict in Donbas and alter the developments in the region.