Russian forces are close to taking the eastern Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk after a pincer movement almost totally encircled it while small groups of highly mobile Russian units penetrated the city, according to Russian military bloggers.

President Volodymyr Zelensky discussed the situation at the front and the planning of long-range operations with the Commander-in-Chief and the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

The 7th Rapid Response Corps of Ukraine's Air Assault Forces has said that Ukrainian troops have improved their tactical position in several districts of the city of Pokrovsk, Donetsk Oblast. Details: The statement says that as of 15:00 on 1 November,

Ukraine is intensifying efforts to defend the strategic hub of Pokrovsk, aiming to secure supply and evacuation routes and root out Russian infantry infiltrating the city, the top army commander said on Thursday.

Pokrovsk was dubbed a "fortress" settlement, key to Ukrainian lines in the east and connected to other cities forming the backbone of Ukraine's defense in the east. Russia kicked off a push to take Pokrovsk in the summer of 2024.

Ukrainian Defense Forces engaged in 172 clashes with Russian troops over the past day, with 55 of them occurring on the Pokrovsk front. Heightened enemy activity was also observed in the Kupiansk, Lyman,

Russian forces have gained a foothold inside the Ukrainian-controlled city of Pokrovsk. It’s fraying Ukrainian defenses, stoking frustrations, and worrying experts, who say if the city falls, it will imperil a swath of Ukraine’s frontline defenses.

EADaily, November 1st, 2025. The Ukrainian Armed Forces continue a complex operation to oust Russian forces from Krasnoarmeysk (Pokrovsk). This was stated in social networks by commander-in-chief Alexander Syrsky.

Ukraine's top military commander said on Saturday his troops were still holding out in the embattled eastern city of Pokrovsk, which Moscow said its forces were at last enclosing in a pincer movement after more than a year of fighting.

By Ben Aris in Berlin The battle for Pokrovsk became intense on November 1. In the first part of the day it looked like the fall of the key logistics hub to Russia that could end the war was imminent.

EADaily, November 1st, 2025. In Kiev, they turned on another "anti-crisis", calling the failed attempt of a suicidal attack on Krasnoarmeysk (Pokrovsk) "the first wave of the counteroffensive."