Kremlin statement: the report of the Russian general
The situation on the front is escalating from the northern and eastern directions. The Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, Valery Gerasimov, announced on November 30 to President Putin that Russian forces had captured the cities of Pokrovsk (Donetsk region) and Vovchansk (Kharkiv region). Kremlin press secretary Dmitry Peskov officially reported on this briefing on December 1. The report also mentioned establishing control over the southern part of Myrnohrad and launching an operation to seize the city of Huliaipole.
Kyiv's refutation: battles continue
However, the Ukrainian side strongly denies this information. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, speaking after a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on December 1, rejected the reports of the capture of Pokrovsk and Vovchansk. At the same time, Zelensky admitted that the situation in these and other directions "remains difficult." The evening report of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine confirmed that 49 offensive actions were carried out in the Pokrovsk direction, and battles are still continuing in five locations.
"Raising diplomatic stakes" for the Western audience
The head of the Center for Countering Disinformation under the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, Andriy Kovalenko, called these statements by the Russian side about control over these settlements an act of "raising diplomatic stakes" for the Western audience. According to him, Vovchansk and Kupyansk, which was previously claimed to be captured, remain under Ukrainian control. Maps from OSINT-projects that track front line changes also do not reflect the full transition of either Vovchansk or Pokrovsk to the control of the Russian army.
Acceleration of the pace of attack: drones and weather factors
At the same time, Ukrainian OSINT-projects like DeepState had warned of the acceleration of the pace of the advance of Russian troops on the territory of Ukraine. According to the assessment of the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), the long-term campaign of attacks by Russia using drones against the logistics of the Ukrainian army had a key impact on the formation of the situation on the front, especially near Pokrovsk. ISW also notes that unfavorable weather conditions, such as fog and precipitation, also aided the success of the Russian army.
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