The small eastern steel town of Pokrovsk – with a pre-war population of 60,000 – has been one of the swing battlegrounds of the war in Ukraine. It has been under siege for nearly a year and a half and still hasn’t completely fallen to Russian forces.

Casualties on both sides are now in the tens of thousands. Russian infantry travelling by SUVs and even motorbikes have been caught frequently in open ground by Ukraine’s artillery and drone bombardment.

Russian President Vladimir Putin wants the town and its neighbour, Kupiansk, seized so he can declare a major win by the end of November, which would mean next week.

Putin is also pushing for the surrender of Pokrovsk and nearby cities by other means, working his back channels with US President Donald Trump and his envoy Steve Wit

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