Pokrovsk has been dubbed a "fortress" city, key for Ukraine's logistics and a long-time stronghold for Kyiv in the east.

The counter-offensive is seen partly as an attempt to force Russia to redeploy units from the east and relieve pressure ... been changes not reflected in the maps.

Russia has claimed that its forces captured a battered but strategic town in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, a day after Kyiv launched a counterattack in the Russian region of Kursk.