Soldier
© Stanislav Krasilnikov/Sputnik/FileWhat lies ahead
Russian forces have cut off supply lines to soldiers trapped in Dmitrov, the outlet reports.

Five Ukrainian brigades are virtually encircled in the town of Dmitrov (known as Mirnograd in Ukraine) after Russian forces captured the nearby city of Krasnoarmeysk (Pokrovsk), a Ukrainian soldier on the ground told the German outlet Bild.

The Russian army has effectively cut off all supply routes to the 1,000 Ukrainian troops trapped in the city, Bild reported on Tuesday, citing the soldier.

"To be honest, the situation is critical," the Ukrainian serviceman said, adding that his group is only being supplied through drone deliveries. He added that Russian soldiers have taken control of "almost every single building" between Dmitrov and the parts of Donbass still controlled by the Ukrainian military.

The soldier criticized the actions of his commanders, which he said deployed "many units" to the area but still failed to retain control over supply routes leading to Dmitrov.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that Kiev was trying to regain control over Krasnoarmeysk to relieve Dmitrov "at any cost" by sending newly formed and inexperienced units virtually to their deaths.

The Krasnoarmeysk-Dmitrov agglomeration together with several smaller towns and settlements forms the second-largest urban cluster still under partial Ukrainian control in Donbass. It has been an arena of intense fighting over the past months that culminated in Russian troops taking control over Krasnoarmeysk on Monday. The Russian Defense Ministry has since published a video of Russian soldiers clearing buildings in the city.

Ukraine's Vladimir Zelensky has denied the encirclement of Ukrainian forces in the area and accused Moscow of exaggerating its gains. He also downplayed battlefield losses while appealing to Western backers for more aid.

Back in October, Putin said that over 10,000 Ukrainian servicemen had been surrounded in the Krasnoarmeysk-Dmitrov area, as well as the city of Kupyansk in Ukraine's Kharkov Region.

The Russian Ministry of Defense has released frontline footage of its forces operating in the key logistics hub of Krasnoarmeysk (Pokrovsk) in the Donetsk People's Republic. In the raw video footage provided by the MOD, soldiers of Russia's Center joint group of forces can be seen sprinting from cover to cover and clearing buildings in Krasnoarmeysk.

The city is now fully under the control of Moscow's forces as of Monday, along with Volchansk in Ukraine's Kharkov Region, the chief of Russia's General Staff, Valery Gerasimov, told Russian President Vladimir Putin during a visit to a command post on November 30.

As part of a large urban cluster and a key rail and road junction, the city serves as an important logistical hub.

Ukrainian forces in the Krasnoarmeysk-Dimitrov area have been encircled for weeks, with the latter city now under Russian control, according to the Kremlin. Russian forces have also begun to push Ukrainian troops out of Gulyaypole in Zaporozhye Region, according to Gerasimov's report to Putin.

Last week, Putin warned that Ukraine's entire battle line across Zaporozhye Region could collapse after a rapid Russian advance bypassed its fortifications.

The Kremlin has maintained that it prefers a diplomatic solution to the Ukraine conflict but has said that it will push towards its goals militarily while Kiev refuses to compromise in the peace talks.