Kiev is grappling with an issue beyond just insufficient military personnel.
The Ukrainian offensive in the Kursk region cannot halt the Russian progress towards Donetsk's Pokrovsk. Russian troops are capturing critical towns with minimal resistance, moving closer to Pokrovsk's doorstep. Experts suggest the primary issue lies elsewhere.
Although the Ukrainian offensive in the Kursk region, recently, has seen a marked slowdown, the Russians are making headway swiftly in the Pokrovsk front within the Donbass. As per Chief Commander Oleksandr Syrskyi, Ukrainian troops have occupied approximately 1,300 square kilometers and around 100 settlements in the Kursk region since the commencement of the offensive on August 6. Despite this substantial acquisition, the terrain gained predominantly occurred during the initial days of the operation. On August 13, Syrskyi reported that Ukraine had command over 1,000 square kilometers within the Kursk region.
The rate of advancement has indeed slowed down, as anticipated. The surprise factor had lost its charm, stated Austrian Colonel Markus Reisner in an interview with ntv.de earlier this week. “The Ukrainian army is striving to advance whenever possible. However, the main focus should be on preparing for counterattacks,” he elaborated.
Certainly, there appear to be successful Russian counteroffensive attempts, even if on a small scale. While Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced an increase in territorial gains nearby the border on Wednesday, it is rumored that Russian forces have recaptured the strategically significant town of Korenjovo in the north of the seized region, citing sources from the Ukrainian project Deep State Map. Neither Kyiv nor Moscow has verified or refuted these claims. It seems highly unlikely that Ukraine will significantly enlarge its territory in the region shortly.
The Pokrovsk situation is "extremely challenging"
One of Ukraine's aims was to diminish Kremlin troops' presence at the Donbass front via the Kursk offensive. Nevertheless, it appears this attempt hasn't been wholly successful — or at least not entirely. Despite the reported dispatch of 30,000 soldiers to the Kursk region, Russian troops persist in their advance in Donbass, despite heavy casualties, and now are on the outskirts of the strategically vital city of Pokrovsk.
Prior to the conflict, Pokrovsk had approximately 60,000 residents and serves as an essential logistics hub. Its wide-ranging networks of roads and railways facilitate the efficient distribution of ammunition and other military supplies. The loss of Pokrovsk would negatively impact Ukraine's supply lines and thereby endanger its defense strategy.
President Zelenskyy acknowledged in a video address that the situation around Pokrovsk is "extremely challenging." This is further confirmed by the loss of the town of Novohrodivka, which is only about 10 kilometers from Pokrovsk. According to Deep State and ISW, Russian forces have managed to take control of the majority of the 15,000-population town in a few days. Ukrainian MP Mariana Bezugla criticized the fact that the town surrendered almost effortlessly. “The trenches before Novohrodivka were empty. There was practically no Ukrainian army in the town which previously housed 20,000 inhabitants,” she asserted on social media.
Are there fewer troops at the Pokrovsk front because they have been transferred to the Kursk region? Renowned Ukrainian military journalist Yuriy Butusov claims otherwise. The swift fall of Novohrodivka, he explained during an interview with Current Time, a Prague-based Russian-language TV channel, was not due to Russian forces' overwhelming superiority but rather "organizational and administrative issues within the Ukrainian army." Butusov also added that the situation deteriorated after a new commander, lacking experience at this level, was appointed by Syrytsya in this specific unit.
Deep State analysts have similar views. “The command accountable for this sector lacks situational awareness and fails to manage the overall situation,” Roman Pogorelyi, an analyst with the project, told Kyiw24 TV. “Discussions with soldiers and brigades there indicate that the situation is complete chaos.”
However, experts agree that Ukraine will not surrender Pokrovsk without a fight. “Our objective is to prevent the enemy from approaching the city close enough to conduct sustained artillery shelling," an unnamed Ukrainian officer told Radio Svoboda. Despite ongoing evacuations, around 38,000 civilians remain in Pokrovsk. Those who stay believe "that Ukrainian forces will not abandon Pokrovsk and will not retreat from it," the officer added. “This belief provides the greatest motivation.”
Given the ongoing conflict in the Donbass region, particularly the advancement of Russian troops towards Pokrovsk, here are two sentences that contain the mentioned word 'The Donbass':
The Ukrainian offensive in the Kursk region aims to diminish Kremlin troops' presence at the Donbass front.Despite the reported Ukraine gains near the border, the strategic city of Pokrovsk in the Donbass remains under Russian threat.
