Ukrainian paratroopers claim symbolic victory over Oplot unit near Pokrovsk

Ukrainian forces on Monday said they had inflicted heavy losses on Russian units during intense fighting near Pokrovsk, according to a statement from Ukraine’s 79th Air Assault Brigade.

The brigade said its troops engaged Russian forces in a battle that resulted in the combat ineffectiveness of the 2nd Battalion of the Oplot formation, part of the 5th Motor Rifle Brigade.

The Ukrainian unit said the losses suffered by the Russian formation were so severe that Russian commanders were forced to urgently withdraw the remaining personnel from the front line.

The brigade noted that the Oplot formation held symbolic significance for Ukrainian paratroopers. The unit is associated with the late separatist leader Alexander Zakharchenko, who led Russian-backed forces in eastern Ukraine and was killed in 2018.

Soldiers from the 79th Air Assault Brigade previously fought the same formation during the defence of Donetsk International Airport in 2014, where Ukrainian troops - often referred to as “cyborgs” for their resilience - resisted repeated assaults by separatist and Russian-backed forces.

Twelve years later, the brigade said its paratroopers again encountered the Oplot unit on the battlefield, this time near Pokrovsk, with what it described as devastating consequences for the attacking forces.