Thick fog has enabled Russian troops to move further into the key strategic city of Pokrovsk in eastern Ukraine.
Ukraine's 7th Airborne Assault Corps says weather conditions, particularly dense fog, have prompted Moscow to intensify its bid to get increasing numbers into the ruined city and encircle Ukrainian forces.
Russian forces have spent more than a year trying to seize the city, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says the fog has favoured Russian attacks, with the situation now deemed difficult.
Meanwhile, army chief Oleksandr Syrskyi has warned that the situation on the front line in the southeastern Zaporzhzhia region has 'significantly worsened', following the loss of three settlements.
Syrskyi highlighted that Russian activity is particularly heavy around Pokrovsk. A viral video shared on social media shows Russian soldiers openly navigating through a hazy road in civilian cars and motorbikes.
The BBC has verified that this video was filmed on the southern outskirts of the town along the Selidove-Pokrovsk highway.
For several days, fog has obscured visibility for reconnaissance missions, according to a drone pilot from the "Shershni Dovbusha" unit of the 68th brigade, who uses the call sign 'Goose'.
This condition has allowed Russian forces to 'dare' launch assaults with a column of vehicles that would otherwise be at immediate risk of elimination by Ukrainian drones.
The 7th Corps claims that there are now approximately 300 Russian soldiers in Pokrovsk, a figure echoed by Zelensky last Wednesday, although it appears to have increased since then.
According to monitoring by the Ukraine-based DeepState group, Russian troops are closing in on most areas of Pokrovsk, leading some observers to suggest that its fall is imminent.
Most areas of the city now fall within a grey zone, where both sides lack complete control, as described by 'Goose', the drone pilot.
Moscow's strategy appears aimed at encircling both Pokrovsk and the nearby Myrnohrad region, creating a condition referred to as a 'cauldron'.
Ukrainian forces are striving to push back Russian troops from regions like Suvorove and Rodynske to prevent this encirclement and establish a larger gap between the flanking Russian troops.
Russian attacks target logistical routes supporting Ukrainian troops in Pokrovsk using drones, artillery, and ground assaults.
Ukrainian military analyst Kostyantyn Mashovets notes the effectiveness of Russian infiltration tactics, wherein troops impersonate locals or Ukrainian soldiers to sow chaos among defenders prior to a larger assault.
Meanwhile, the Kremlin’s offensive is also ongoing in other regions like Kupyansk in the northeast and Zaporizhzhya in the south, with government officials admitting the situation in these areas is also challenging.
