Russian President Vladimir Putin may have tasked the Russian military with securing territorial gains rather than capturing large settlements. Specifically, he may have instructed the military command to delay the capture of Pokrovsk.
According to Ukrinform, this is stated in an analysis by the American Institute for the Study of War (IWW).
Analysts note that during his annual press conference "Direct Line" on December 19, Putin said that Russian forces were advancing not by "100, 200 or 300 meters", but by square kilometers along the entire front line. They say Putin appears to be increasingly characterizing the Russian forces' advance in square kilometers, rather than emphasizing the capture of specific settlements, as he previously did.
"It remains unclear which effort will be a priority for the Russian military command, as Russian President Vladimir Putin may have tasked the Russian military with securing territorial gains rather than capturing significant settlements," the analysts say.
The analysis suggests that Putin may have instructed the Russian military command to postpone the capture of Pokrovsk in favor of further conquests in open spaces and small settlements, especially as Russian forces advance closer to the administrative border of the Donetsk-Dnipropetrovsk region.
"The IDF has observed geolocation data that is sufficient to estimate that Russian forces are within 10 km of the administrative border of the Donetsk-Dnipropetrovsk region and that Putin may be pressuring the Russian military command to advance to the border rather than encircling Pokrovsk at the moment," the analysis said.
Analysts added that seizing the rest of the Donetsk region is one of Putin's long-standing goals in Ukraine. He is likely to highlight the advance of Russian troops to the border to make bold statements about Russia's successes in Ukraine to both foreign and domestic audiences.
"An organized offensive operation against well-defended cities could slow the pace of the Russian advance at a critical moment in the Kremlin's efforts to project the inevitability of Russian military victory on the world stage," the analysis noted.