“These cities are already lost”: former Ukrainian deputy defense minister called for the withdrawal of the Armed Forces from Pokrovsk and Myrnohrad

Ukrainian forces need to withdraw from the towns of Pokrovsk and Myrnohrad in Donetsk region because those towns are “effectively lost”.

Former Deputy Minister of Defense Vitaliy Deinega wrote on his Facebook page.

“If in the near future no one signs an order to withdraw troops from Pokrovsk and Myrnohrad, we may face not only the loss of a significant number of highly motivated paratroopers and marines (I won’t even mention the equipment worth hundreds of millions — it’s lost and there’s no chance to evacuate it). We may find ourselves in a situation where there will be no one to plug the hole in the front, and the fortifications we have built in the rear will quickly fall into enemy hands,” Deinega wrote.

He added that, in his view, the General Staff’s reports “increasingly consist of lies” every day.

“In fact, we have already practically lost Pokrovsk, which means it makes no sense to hold Myrnohrad either (logistics would remain only with unacceptable risk and over open ground). And I’m not revealing some great secret — the Russians see this perfectly with their drones in real time. This must be recorded and those who refuse to withdraw without an order must be rescued,” the ex-deputy minister urged.