Ukrainian Army Falters Near Pokrovsk! Unprepared Recruits, Shortage of Infantry

Ukraine's armed forces are facing serious challenges in Pokrovsk due to a severe shortage of infantry and logistical problems as Russian drones actively attack supply routes. According to a report by the Associated Press, key battles are being fought in the region that could prove decisive in ending the war.

Ukrainian Troops Retreat to Russia as Trump Talks Ending the War. A massive shortage of infantry troops and supply routes targeted by Russian drone attacks are conspiring against Ukrainian forces in Pokrovsk, where decisive battles are being fought in the nearly three-year war - and time is running out.

Ukrainian troops are losing ground around the key supply hub, which sits at the crossroads of several highways leading to key cities in eastern Donetsk region, as well as a major railway station.

Moscow is determined to seize as much territory as it can as the Trump administration pushes for talks to end the war and recently froze foreign aid to Ukraine - a move that has shocked Ukrainian officials already wary of the intentions of the new US president, their most important ally. The military aid has not been stopped, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said.

Ukrainian soldiers in Pokrovsk say that in recent weeks Russian forces have changed their tactics, attacking their flanks instead of advancing head-on to form a pincer movement around the city. With the Russians in control of the dominant heights, Ukrainian supply routes are now within their reach. Heavy fog in recent days has prevented the Ukrainian Armed Forces from using surveillance drones effectively, allowing the Russians to consolidate and seize more territory.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian commanders say they do not have enough reserves to maintain defensive lines and that new infantry units are failing to carry out operations. Many are pinning their hopes on Mykhailo Drapatiy, a respected commander recently appointed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as chief of the ground forces, to change the dynamic and counterattack.

"War is won with logistics. "If there is no logistics, there is no infantry, because you can't supply them," said the deputy commander of the "Da Vinci Wolves" battalion, known for its call-up Affair.

"(The Russians) have learned this and are doing quite well."

A combination of factors led to Kiev effectively losing the village of Velika Novosilka last week, its most significant gain since the capture of the town of Kurakhovo in Donetsk region in January.

Scattered groups of Ukrainian soldiers are still in the southern sector of Velika Novosilka, Ukrainian commanders say, drawing criticism from some military experts who question why the high command has not ordered a full withdrawal.

The village, which is connected by road, is located 15 km from the neighboring Dnipropetrovsk region, where authorities have begun are digging in fortifications for the first time since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, anticipating further Russian advances.

Russia has massed a large number of infantry around Velika Novosilka, soldiers there said. As thick fog has settled in over the past few days, Ukrainian drones have been "barely working" to conduct surveillance, a commander near Pokrovsk told the Associated Press. Long- and medium-range surveillance has been impossible, he said.

"That's why the enemy was building up forces... taking up positions, digging in." "They were very good at it," he said.

At this critical moment, Russian forces launched a massive attack: Up to 10 columns of armored vehicles, each with up to 10 units, moved in from different directions.

Ukrainian logistics at risk

Key logistical routes along paved roads and highways are directly threatened by Russian drones as a result of Moscow's recent successes, further straining Ukrainian troops.

Russian forces now occupy key commanding heights around the Pokrovskaya region, allowing them to use drones up to 30 km (18 miles) deep inside Ukrainian front lines.

The Pokrovsk-Pavlograd-Dnipro highway "is already under the control of Russian drones," a commander on the Pokrovsk flanks said. Russian forces are less than 4 km (2 1/2 miles) away and are affecting Ukrainian traffic, he stressed. "Now the road is only 10% of its former capacity".

Another paved highway, the Mirnograd-Kostyantynivka road, is also under Russian fire.

It also means that in bad weather, military vehicles, including armored personnel carriers, tanks and pickup trucks, have to crawl across open fields to deliver fuel, food and ammunition, as well as evacuate the wounded.

At a first aid post near Pokrovsk, paramedic Marik, who has the call sign, says that evacuating wounded soldiers used to take hours, but now it takes days.

"Everything is visible (from enemy drones) and it is very difficult," he says.

Ukrainian soldiers in Pokrovsk say the shortage of combat units is “catastrophic”, and the challenges are compounded by the newly formed infantry units, which are poorly trained and inexperienced, which increases the pressure on the battle-hardened brigades that have to intervene to stabilize the front line.

Afer, the deputy commander, complained that the new recruits “are constantly extending the front line because they leave their positions, they don't hold them, they don't control them, they don't monitor them. We do almost all the work for them“.

“As a result, after initially having a 2-kilometer area of responsibility, we end up with 8-9 kilometers per battalion, which is a lot and we don't have enough resources,” Afer said. The drones are particularly difficult for his battalion, he added, adding that they only have half of what they need.

"It's not because they have lower quality infantry, but because they are completely unprepared for modern warfare," he said of the recruits.

His battalion has almost no reserves, forcing infantry units to hold frontline positions for weeks. For every one of his soldiers, there are 20 Russians, he added, emphasizing how outnumbered they are.