Russia Sends 170,000 Troops—More Than Most European Armies—to Capture One Ukrainian City

The Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk in the Donetsk region has been under siege by Russian forces for over a year. Moscow has concentrated a massive force on the city and its surrounding areas. The Russian military group in the area numbers approximately 170,000 troops, reported Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Russia’s objective: to seize the city by year’s end.

Once home to over 100,000 residents and known as an industrial hub with mines and manufacturing facilities, Pokrovsk today lies in ruins. And yet, the Kremlin is determined to capture it. The scale of the assault is unlike anything previously seen in the war. Such a concentration of forces in a single sector of the front recalls examples not witnessed since World War II, and is unprecedented in recent decades.

A massive force outside Pokrovsk

To grasp the magnitude of Russia’s offensive, comparisons are essential: just how large is 170,000 troops?

Ahead of the full-scale invasion in 2022, Moscow had deployed between 160,000 and 200,000 soldiers to Ukraine’s borders. In other words, Russia is now attempting to take a single city with an army comparable in size to the one originally intended to seize all of Right-Bank Ukraine.

Currently, there are about 600,000 Russian troops on occupied Ukrainian territory. One-third of them are now concentrated on a single target—Pokrovsk.

Each new major Russian offensive has grown more difficult. It took Moscow months and an estimated 120,000 troops to capture Avdiivka in early 2024—at the cost of roughly one-third of that force, killed or wounded. Pokrovsk has held since the summer of 2024 and continues to resist, though the defense grows more grueling by the day.

Only a few European armies are bigger

Only a handful of European countries have standing armies (excluding reservists) that exceed the size of the Russian force near Pokrovsk:

• Poland—216,000 active personnel

• France—204,000

• Germany—185,000

• Italy—171,000

Within NATO, only the United States and Türkiye maintain larger active forces—over 1.2 million and roughly 380,000, respectively.

To put this into perspective: the Russian force outside Pokrovsk is larger than the combined standing armies of 10 European countries, excluding reservists.

A brutal defense

Today, the Kremlin is employing the same approach that Stalin used 80 years ago: overwhelming with numbers, regardless of the casualties. The Soviet Union was among the world’s top nations in wartime losses—a grim distinction not to be proud of.

Ukrainian commanders state plainly: Russia is sending waves of soldiers to certain death in such numbers that even FPV drones can’t be launched quickly enough to eliminate them. Meanwhile, Russian field officers reportedly shoot their soldiers for refusing going on "suicide" assaults.

But Pokrovsk is more than a symbolic goal for Moscow. It is a logistical linchpin, with key roadways and railway lines. It is also a potential fortified staging ground for further offensives.

Defending against such pressure requires more artillery, drones, mines, and other strike capabilities—as well as long-range missiles — to destroy ammunition depots, supply chains, command centers, and other critical nodes that coordinate the Russian advance.

Among these tools are Storm Shadow missiles, a new batch of which has been delivered to Ukraine. Another crucial weapon system is the Tomahawk missile, which could be used to target airfields and military stockpiles deep behind enemy lines. These advanced weapons may help Ukraine blunt the Russian assault by limiting the enemy’s offensive potential.

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