The Russian invasion forces are making small progress on the front in eastern Ukraine – international news agencies report. Their main target remains the city of Bakhmut, which they have been trying to seize for months without success. Both Bakhmut and the neighboring villages of Kliškiivka and Kurdiumivka, located south of the city, came under new Russian fire. According to the Ukrainian military, though, the Russians allegedly got stuck near the town of Avdiivka, the second focal point of their attacks in the disputed Donetsk region. Troop movements are also registered in Lyman, a city recaptured by the Ukrainians in October. In an unusually detailed intelligence update, British Ministry of Defense experts, who are constantly monitoring the situation on the front, note that Russian forces have advanced several hundred meters across a river towards the town of Vuhledar, and recorded made small wins. Specialists say that Moscow’s troops would like to attract the Ukrainian forces defending Bakhmut to Vuhledar.
Eugen Cojocariu, Radio Romania International
