Pokrovsk has become Russia’s main target, which has concentrated its largest assault forces there, said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in his Monday evening address to the nation, reports RBC Ukraine.
“Currently, in Pokrovsk, the occupiers have the most striking forces and the most significant offensive activity. Fierce fighting continues in the city. This is their main objective, Pokrovsk,” Zelensky emphasized.
He added that every success of the Ukrainian army in this direction is a positive result for all of Ukraine and its defense.
Russia has been trying for months to capture Pokrovsk, a key element of Ukraine’s defensive lines, considering it the most important point of advance toward occupying the entire Donetsk region.
Earlier, citing Ukrainian intelligence sources, Zelensky told the American outlet Axios that Russian President Vladimir Putin privately stated that Russia will seize all of Donbas, which includes the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, by October 15. Russia controls around 75 percent of the Donetsk region. About 6,600 square kilometers are still under Ukraine’s control.
