Russian Troops Increase Attacks On Two Main Cities Of Ukraine In Eastern Region

Ukrainian military in Bakhmut. (Wikimedia Commons/30th Prince Constanty Ostragski Mechanized Brigade)

JAKARTA - Russian troops continue to step up attacks along a concentrated frontline in two Ukrainian cities in the eastern Donetsk region, the Ukrainian military reported, while Kyiv said they managed to fend off more than 40 enemy attacks in the past 24 hours.

The most severe fighting occurred along an approach from the west to Bakhmut, the general staff of the Ukrainian armed forces said on Sunday, one of the two cities in the east, along with Avdivka, who was targeted by the Russian military.

It said Russian troops had launched an unsuccessful attack on the western region of Bakhmut, which has now largely been destroyed. At least 10 cities and villages in the region have been targeted by Russian attacks.

The report said Russian troops also made no progress in the attack on Avdivka, the focus of both battles in the east, and reported widespread Russian shootings in the northern region.

"At the center of Zaporizhia and the southern Kherson region, enemy forces continue to build forts of defense," the report said.

"Several cities were fired upon," the report added.

Meanwhile, officials in the southern region said Russian planes had used guided bombs against cities in the Kherson region.

The military said Ukrainian forces would continue to defend Bakhmut from a continuous Russian attack, although President Zelensky last week revealed that if its troops were at risk of being trapped, they could be withdrawn.

"The enemy is trying to seize our city's fort in any way," Serhiy Cherevatyi, a spokesman for Ukraine's eastern military command, said on national television.

"Although very difficult, we are still in control of the situation. Our units detained the enemy and caused maximum damage."

It is known that controlling Bakhmut could allow Russia to directly target Ukraine's defense lines in Chasiv Yar in the east, and pave the way for its troops to advance to the two major cities it has long targeted in the Donetsk region: Kramatorsk and Sloviansk.

Separately, Ukrainian military analyst Zhdanov said Russian troops had taken control of downtown Bakhmut, and most of their actions are now focusing on the city's train station.

"There was fierce fighting in the city center and the enemy gradually moved to the western suburbs," said Zhdanov.

Russian forces have surrounded Bakhmut for months in the longest fighting in more than a year of war.