Street War Breaks Out In Sievierodonetsk City, President Zelensky Ensures His Troops Will Not Surrender To Russia

President Zelensky while visiting his troops on the front lines. (President.gov.ua)

JAKARTA - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made sure his troops would not surrender from Russia, in the biggest urban battle that broke out in Sievierodontesk during a speech Monday night.

"Our heroes have not given up positions in Sievierodonetsk. In the city, fierce street fighting continues," President Zelensky said, as reported by Reuters on June 7.

Referring to the wider Donbas industrial area where Sievierodonetsk is located, President Zelensky said: "And the Ukrainian Donbas stand, stand strong."

Ukrainian and Russian troops are fighting street after street for control of the industrial city of Sievierodonetsk, in a key battle of the Kremlin offensive in Ukraine's eastern Donbas region.

Which side has the upper hand is unclear, with the situation changing from hour to hour, Oleksandr Stryuk, head of administration in Sievierodonetsk, said on television.

The city has been the main target of Russian offensives in the Donbas, which comprises the provinces of Luhansk and Donetsk, as the Kremlin invasion continues in a war of attrition that has seen cities destroyed by barrage of artillery.

Ukraine's Defense Ministry said Russia was putting troops and equipment into its bid to seize the largest city still in Ukrainian control of Luhansk.

Meanwhile, provincial governor Serhiy Gaidai said earlier that the situation had worsened after Ukrainian defenders had pushed Russia back over the weekend as they appeared to be on the verge of victory.

Stryuk said street fighting was raging and neither side was prepared to back down. Both sides say they have inflicted heavy casualties on each other.

In its evening update, the Ukrainian military said two civilians were killed in Russian shelling in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions on Monday and that Russian forces had opened fire on more than 20 communities.

Reuters was unable to independently verify the battlefield reports. Russia denies targeting civilians in the conflict.