Ukrainian forces have managed to halt the advance of Russian troops in the Pokrovsk sector in Donetsk Oblast, Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said in an interview with CNN aired on Sept. 5.
The eastern front near Pokrovsk has been the scene of fierce fighting for several months and a focal point of Russia's offensive in Donetsk Oblast. The city is an important logistical hub for Ukrainian forces.
"Over the last six days, the enemy hasn’t advanced a single meter in the Pokrovsk direction. In other words, our strategy is working," Syrskyi said.
The Kyiv Independent could not independently verify the claim.
Russian troops have advanced in recent days in some other directions in Donetsk Oblast, according to the crowd-sourced monitoring website DeepState.
According to Syrskyi, Russia is concentrating its most well-trained units in the Pokrovsk area, but the scale of shelling and the intensity of Moscow's offensive have decreased.
"We've taken away their ability to maneuver and to deploy their reinforcements from other directions… And this weakening has definitely been felt in other areas," the general said.
After Ukraine launched its Kursk operation a month ago, Russia has pulled over 60,000 troops to Kursk Oblast as of early September, President Volodymyr Zelensky said. Moscow was forced to divert troops from other sectors, for example, from Zaporizhzhia or Kherson oblasts, he added.
The Kyiv Independent could not independently verify Zelensky's claim.
Responding to a question from the Kyiv Independent, Zelensky said on Aug. 27 that the Russian advance on Pokrovsk had slowed in tempo compared to before the Kursk operation began. A few days later, the U.K. Defense Ministry reported that Russian troops had accelerated their advance towards the town.
Pokrovsk authorities urged residents to evacuate on Aug. 15 after Russian forces reached about 10 kilometers (6 miles) from the town's outskirts.
Asami Terajima
