Russian advances in Donetsk, Ukrainian forces withdraw from Pokrovsk and the threat of a siege of Mirnograd

According to recent reports, Ukrainian forces are slowly retreating from the key city of Pokrovsk in Donetsk Oblast, while Russian forces, with a steady advance south of the city, now control 46 percent of it.

These developments, reported in mid-October 2025, could lead to the complete fall of Pokrovsk and put the nearby city of Mironograd under siege.

Russian sources claim that their forces have entered Mirnograd from the southeast and are advancing towards its center and east.

As one of the main urban centers of Donetsk Oblast, these two cities have been involved in intense fighting for weeks, and their possible fall could deal a strategic blow to Ukraine’s defense lines.