Russian forces are just 1.5 kilometers (1 mile) outside the Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk after Russian units pushed up from the south, and some advance groups of special forces have even entered the road and rail hub, pro-Russian war bloggers said on Friday. Russia controls a large chunk of Ukraine and is advancing at the fastest pace since the early days of its invasion in 2022, according to open source maps. The focus of Russia’s advance since Ukraine carved out a slice of Russia’s Kursk region in August is on the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk where Russia currently controls over 60 percent of the territory.For the latest updates on the Russia-Ukraine war, visit our dedicated page.A key part of the strategy is to take Pokrovsk, which would allow Moscow to disrupt Ukrainian supply lines along the eastern front and boost its campaign to capture the city of Chasiv Yar, which sits on higher ground offering potential control of a wider area. Yuri