On November 1, the Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian army said that the country's soldiers are still holding back in the eastern city of Pokrovsk, where Russia has just declared that their forces have finally gained an advantage through a strategy of stagnation after more than a year of fighting.
We are holding Pokrovsk - Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi wrote on Facebook, affirming that Ukraine will still conduct a comprehensive campaign to push the Russian army out of Pokrovsk.
In recent days, Russia has continuously issued information about the increase in progress around Pokrovsk.
Russian officials say taking Pokrovsk and Kostiantynivka in the northeast would allow them to advance north, towards two major cities still held by Ukraine in Donetsk, Kramatorsk and Sloviansk.
Ukraine's Deep state map shows that the Russian military has taken complete control of a small part of the southern part of the city, much of which is still a "grey area" not under the control of any party.
According to Deepstate's official information, Russian forces are still penetrating areas south of Pokrovsk, with a large number of infantry still present in the city.
However, Ukraine insists it is continuously expanding control of the "gray area" and deploying senior officers and special forces units to search for the encroachment.
Russia began advancing into Pokrovsk - an area considered the "gateway to Donetsk" - in mid-2024, as part of a campaign to control the entire Donetsk region, a territory that Russia has declared it an all- done colony.
Since then, Russia has made slow but steady progress in clashes with Ukraine along the 1,000km front.
Russia aims to control the entire Donbass region, including the two provinces of Luhansk and Donetsk. Ukraine still holds about 10% of Donbass, equivalent to an area of about 5,000km2 in western Donetsk.
