ISTANBUL

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Friday that despite Russian presence in Pokrovsk, Donetsk, the Ukrainian forces maintain control over the situation, rejecting claims of encirclement in the embattled eastern city.

“The situation in Pokrovsk is difficult. All their forces are there. This morning, I spoke with the commander-in-chief — there are no changes in Pokrovsk. There are Russians in the city. Ours are destroying them, destroying them little by little — because we also need to protect the personnel,” Zelenskyy said during a briefing, as quoted by the state-run Ukrinform news agency.

He emphasized that there is currently no encirclement of Pokrovsk and that the defense forces continue to hold their positions.

Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) head Vasyl Malyuk recalled that Russian forces had claimed the capture of Pokrovsk more than a year ago but have advanced only seven kilometers (four miles).

Zelenskyy added that both sides are heavily relying on drones, which dominate logistics and reconnaissance operations. “They dominate with drones and control logistics with drones. But we also dominate with drones on the other side and block their logistics,” he said.

He noted that the battle for Pokrovsk remains one of the most intense on the front, as Russian forces try to seize the city “at any cost,” but have so far failed to capture Sumy, Kupyansk, Dobropillya, or Zaporizhzhia.

Ukrainian officials reported 132 clashes across the front in the past day, with more than one-third taking place in the Pokrovsk direction.