Russia claimed on Monday that it had captured the eastern Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk after months of intense fighting for control of the strategic location, which would be a major victory for Moscow if true.
The claim came a day after Russian President Vladimir Putin visited front-line troops and thanked them for the “achievement of the operation” in Pokrovsk. Moscow suffered thousands of casualties in the attack on the city.
Ukraine has not commented directly on Russia’s claims, but Andriy Kovalenko, head of the Ukraine Counter-Disinformation Center, warned on Monday that Russia would make “attempts in the coming weeks to put pressure on the front lines, accompanied by loud statements.”
He said this was done “to raise the diplomatic stakes exclusively for a Western audience” amid new negotiations on how to end the war in Ukraine.
Earlier on Monday, the Ukrainian military announced that “despite the difficult situation” in Pokrovsk and surrounding areas, Ukrainian forces “continue to deter enemy attacks.”
The Kremlin’s claims come on the heels of high-level talks between the United States and Ukraine over how to end the war in Florida, and the Kremlin said President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff was scheduled to meet with Putin on Tuesday.
Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday that General Valery Gerasimov, the Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, informed President Putin during a visit to the military headquarters on Sunday that Russian troops had captured Pokrovsk. It is unclear why the Kremlin did not announce the alleged breakthrough sooner.
A video released by the Kremlin on Monday and geolocated by CNN shows Russian soldiers unfurling a Russian flag in the center of Pokrovsk, a city that has been under Moscow’s control for some time. Moscow has been trying to capture Pokrovsk at increasingly high costs for more than 20 months.
Pokrovsk has long been considered an important city by Ukrainians thanks to its road and rail connections, but frequent drone and shelling of major highways and rail lines has forced Kiev to look for alternative supply routes, reducing the city’s strategic value.
Peskov said that during Sunday’s visit, Putin expressed gratitude to the commanders and military personnel for their “successful actions.”
“I would like to thank you for the results of the operation in Pokrovsk. I would like to thank you, all the commanders and personnel of the units, and, of course, the combatants carrying out combat missions,” Putin said.
Putin added that success in Pokrovsk would “ensure steady progress” towards all objectives of the war.
CNN’s Ivana Kottasová contributed reporting.
