KYIV, Nov 3: Ukraine's army chief has warned that his forces are facing "one of the most powerful Russian offensives" since the start of the war as Russia claimed it captured more settlements on the eastern frontline.
Russia has steadily been making gains in the eastern Donbas region, which Russia's President Vladimir Putin aims to capture in full. Reuters, citing open source data, reported that Russia has been advancing at its fastest pace in at least a year.
Ukraine's Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said the situation on the front line "remains difficult" and certain areas "require constant renewal of resources of Ukrainian units" in a statement on Telegram Saturday morning.
Kyiv's forces, he said, are "holding back one of the most powerful Russian offensives since the beginning of the full-scale invasion."
Over the weekend, Russia claimed the capture of two settlements in the Donetsk region - Kurakhivka and Vyshneve. Ukrainian officials have not confirmed either claim.
Vyshneve is close to Pokrovsk, a key logistics hub in the east and a major target of the Russian offensive.
Meanwhile Russian drone attacks continue, with Ukraine bracing for what could be a difficult winter with energy infrastructure already badly hit.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia launched over 50 drone attacks at Ukraine overnight into Sunday. Over the past week, Russia has dropped more than 900 bombs on Ukraine, and launched about 30 missiles and nearly 500 Shahed drones in various regions of Ukraine, he added.
Most of the strikes were directed against civilian objects and critical infrastructure, the statement said.
Zelensky spent recent weeks trying to drum up additional support but has so far been unable to secure consent to fire deeper into Russia. —CNN
