Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, admitted that Russian forces have the numerical advantage in the battle for the eastern city of Sievierodonetsk, but insisted Ukraine's forces had every chance of fighting back.
At a briefing in Kyiv, Zelenskiy said Ukrainian forces defending Sievierodonetsk were holding on despite Russian troops assaults, but the situation on the eastern front was difficult. The cities of Sievierodonetsk and its sister city of Lysychansk are dead, he said.
Zelenskiy said that Ukraine's forces were more numerous and more powerful, but he said that Ukraine's forces had every chance of fighting back and the Ukrainian command would make decisions according to the situation Between 10,000 and 15,000 civilians are still in Sievierodonetsk, which has been shelled for weeks by Russian artillery.
He said that the situation would become very difficult for Ukraine if Russia breaks through in the eastern Donbas region.