Russia’s claims that they have captured the Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk are false, Brigadier General (Ret’d) Alar Laneman said, adding Ukrainian forces have it worse in and around Zaporizhzhia.
Russia has been attempting to take Pokrovsk, a key transport hub, since summer last year.
Speaking to “Ukraina stuudio,” Laneman, who is also an independent MP at the Riigikogu, said: “Before coming here, I looked at the Finnish reserve officers’ overview of this war, and clearly there have been advances in the direction of Pokrovsk and the Myrnohrad area. Very intense small-unit fire-fights have been underway, along with precision strikes from the Ukrainian side. The aim being to destroy the infiltrating Russian forces.”
Of less encouraging signs, Russia has been attempting to move more heavy materiel into the area, demonstrating they have the resources and the ability to use them there. “There was some information recently that units from the Pskov airborne division were deployed there, but I haven’t heard anything more about that,” he added.
Assessments by various objective observers differ from Russia’s claims, he added. While Russia is trying to cut off a corridor Ukraine uses to supply its troops, resistance there remains ongoing. “If we recall, a similar situation – is there an encirclement, is there not an encirclement – has in fact gone on for a very long time. The Ukrainian side reportedly views it as a place to destroy Russian forces,” Laneman said.
As to the host’s question about whether Ukrainians see Pokrovsk as a “meat grinder” for destroying Russian army personnel, Laneman answered in the affirmative.
At the same time, the situation is worse for Ukrainians in the Zaporizhzhia sector to the southwest, Laneman said. Russian forces there have been trying to exploit weather conditions to achieve breakthroughs at the front.
“Bad weather spells limited visibility, which prevents defenders from detecting infiltrating small units in time, or even single enemy soldiers who seize an advantageous spot and try to support the next units coming through. At some point there are enough units, a force is strong enough, and then something can be done that directly neutralizes a Ukrainian position,” Laneman said.
Host Reimo Sildvee asked how reasonable it will be for Ukrainians to be able to maintain a “meat grinder” in Pokrovsk for much longer.
“For us sitting here, far away, in peaceful conditions, it may indeed be impossible to grasp why exactly they do these things and hold this place. One reason is certainly that it is very difficult to attack a city. In a city the defender has the advantage. In open terrain, a meat grinder like that might not be so easy to set up,” Laneman said.
President Vladimir Putin claimed on Thursday that Russian forces had encircled the embattled Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk and now control 70 percent of it, a claim Kyiv rejects. Oleksandr Syrskyi, Ukraine’s top commander, said Ukraine was pushing back hard and that fighting is still raging in the city center.
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