Kurakhove is priority for Russia to launch offensive on Pokrovsk - AFU serviceman

He said this on the air of the Espreso TV channel.

‘Kurakhove is now a priority for the Russians to launch an offensive on Pokrovsk. If they can quickly capture Pokrovsk, its industrial potential can be used for further operations, even in the direction of Sloviansk or Dnipro region. However, capturing the destroyed city will significantly complicate combat operations and organization of troops, so the enemy hopes to take Pokrovsk in a relatively intact state to use its infrastructure,’ said Tymochko.

According to him, the Russian enemy's current offensive actually reflects their previous plan. The Kurakhove reservoir is a higher priority for them than the town of Kurakhove itself. Russian occupiers intend to build a bridgehead to move some troops to Pokrovsk.

‘The fighting for the town is still ongoing, but the enemy is advancing and trying to fortify the northern side of the reservoir. Until they take Kurakhove and the reservoir banks, it will be extremely difficult for the Russians to make a full-scale attack on Pokrovsk. The enemy hopes to build a line of defense along the reservoir and the town's flanks, but it will be difficult to advance further, especially with the onset of winter and short daylight hours. However, they are likely to try to advance on Pokrovsk, an industrial city,’ he said.

About 100-150,000 enemy troops are concentrated in the Kurakhove-Pokrovsk area, of which almost 40,000 are advancing on Kurakhove. However, it is difficult for them to increase the concentration of forces because of the events on the frontline from Kursk to Kharkiv, from Chasiv Yar to Toretsk. Therefore, they are trying to do it in stages, says Tymochko.

‘Kostiantynopil, Bahatyr and Sukhi Yaly are important settlements. The enemy tried to destroy the dam in Stari Terny to flood the area. This was done in order to seriously complicate our defense, to flood the fortifications, dugouts, trenches and, if possible, the M-15 road leading from Zaporizhzhia to Donetsk. This was intended to complicate the logistics of our Armed Forces to Kurakhove. The enemy also hoped that the destruction of the dam would protect their troops during a potential offensive. They believed that we could create an environmental crisis, although this is not true. The enemy hoped to avoid being flooded when they tried to attack in the area of Yaly or Kostiantynopil,’ he added.

• On December 12, the Institute for the Study of War reported that Russian troops continue to make tactical gains south of Pokrovsk, Donetsk region, attacking weak points and trying to maneuver to directly attack the city from the south.