Moscow Inches Closer to Key Ukrainian City With Conquest of 2 Villages

Moscow may be attempting a pincer movement to surround and besiege the city of Pokrovsk in the eastern Donetsk region.

Amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Ukrainian servicemen ride a tank on a road in the Donetsk region, on Oct. 12, 2024. Roman PILIPEY / AFP via Getty Images

Russian forces are inching closer to a key Ukrainian city that, if seized, would allow Moscow to solidify control over a large swath of occupied east Ukraine.

Moscow claimed on Jan. 31 that its forces captured the village of Novovasylivka and said on Feb. 1 that its troops had also taken control of the suburb of Krymske, both in the eastern Donetsk region.