Russian forces are stepping up their offensive around Pokrovsk on the eastern front, attempting to encircle the city with the head of Ukraine’s Armed Forces warning that the situation is “difficult” and that protecting soldiers remains the priority.

General Oleksandr Shirsky admitted that Russian infantry is massing in the area and said he visited the front himself to hold consultations with Ukrainian unit commanders.

However, he denied as “false propaganda” the information that Ukrainian forces have been surrounded and blocked by Russian troops.

Pokrovsk, a strategically important city in the Donetsk region, serves as a transport and supply hub. Its capture could facilitate Russian efforts to gain full control of the region.

In a statement via Telegram, Sirsky said that “in Pokrovsk, the enemy is massing infantry inside the urban area, constantly changing positions and avoiding direct combat.” As he added, “the main goal is to identify and neutralize them”.

The Ukrainian general denied the Russian reports about the “blockade” of Ukrainian forces in Pokrovsk and Kupyansk, calling them propaganda.

He emphasized at the same time that the commanders of the Ukrainian units are trying to maintain a “balance between their goals and capabilities” and that “the priority remains the protection of the lives of soldiers.”

Russian forces have been trying for more than a year to capture Pokrovsk, which is considered a strategic transport and supply hub. Its capture would open the way to the two largest cities in the region that remain under Ukrainian control, Kramatorsk and Sloviansk.

Russian Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov claimed earlier this week that Ukrainian forces in Pokrovsk have been surrounded, which Kiev strongly denies.

For his part, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky declared that Pokrovsk is Russia’s “main objective”, pointing out that Russian forces are outnumbered eight to one.

“The Russians want to take Pokrovsk to convince the United States that Ukraine is backing down,” he said. “They don’t have any results to “sell” to the Americans, and that’s why they need Pokrovsk,” said the Ukrainian president.

According to the Sybelline company, which specializes in military analysis, the battle for Pokrovsk has entered a “particularly intense and dynamic phase” as Russian forces try to penetrate deeper into the city and encircle Ukrainian soldiers.

The Ukrainian platform DeepState, which monitors developments on the front, reported that Russian forces are “gradually encircling” Pokrovsk as they are outnumbered, cutting off Ukrainian supply routes.

“The situation in Pokrovsk is on the brink of crisis and is steadily deteriorating, perhaps beyond the point of reversal,” the group noted.