Aftermath of Russian missile strike on Ukraine mail depot that killed six
A large-scale Russian assault on a town in the Donbas region has “floundered” after coming up against “strong” Ukrainian defences, Britain’s Ministry of Defence has said.
The MoD said the Kremlin has lost around 200 armoured vehicles during its assaults on Avdiika over the past three weeks.
“In the south, the Ukrainian advance remains relatively static between the two main lines of Russia’s well prepared defensive positions,” the MoD said in a statement.
“Around the Donbas town of Avdiivka, a large-scale Russian assault has floundered on strong Ukrainian defences.”
Elsewhere, EU Commission president Ursula von der Leyen has said the EU will stand by Ukraine for “as long as it takes”.
She made the comment while on her sixth wartime visit to Kyiv, where she was due to hold talks with president Volodymyr Zelensky. The pair were expected to discuss progress on Ukraine joining the bloc.
“Of course the enlargement topic will be at the top of the agenda but also our financial and military support,” she told reporters on her sixth visit to the country.
“The most important message is reassuring that we stand by Ukraine for as long as it takes.”
