Russia closes in on Donetsk city despite Ukraine’s successes elsewhere

The successes Ukraine has announced in its two-week old incursion into Russia have not stopped the steady drive of Moscow’s forces into the eastern part of the country, forcing the evacuation of a key logistical hub Monday.

Officials in the eastern Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk say that they are evacuating the population in case it falls to the Russian advance, which is now less than six miles from the city limits.

“[Russian forces] are moving toward the outskirts of Pokrovsk. We see — it is no secret,” said Katerina Yanzhula, head of information policy in the Pokrovsk military administration, by telephone, adding that it was unclear how much longer the city could hold out. “Maybe the situation there will somehow change — we hope that the enemy will stop somewhere on the approaches to Pokrovsk, that our troops will repel them.”

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