Russia-Ukraine live news: Russia’s eastern offensive has begun | Russia-Ukraine war News
‘Russian forces have started the battle of the Donbas,’ says President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, as attacks escalate.
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Russia’s widely anticipated military offensive in eastern Ukraine has begun.
- The governor of Donetsk says four civilians have been killed in Russian shelling.
- The US plans to begin training Ukrainians on howitzer artillery systems in the coming days, a senior defence official has said.
- Russian President Vladimir Putin says Western sanctions on Moscow have failed.
Here are all the latest updates:
Four dead in shelling in Ukraine’s Donetsk region: Governor
Russian shelling in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region has killed four people, Governor Pavlo Kirilenko said on his Telegram channel.
Al Jazeera could not independently verify the figure.
‘Second phase of the war has started,’ says Ukrainian official
Ukraine’s presidential chief of staff says “the second phase of the war has started”, referring to Russia’s new assault in the country’s east.
“Believe in our army, it is very strong,” Yermak wrote on the Telegram messaging app, assuring Ukrainians that Ukraine’s forces could hold off the offensive.
In a video address, Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy also said, “We can now say that Russian forces have started the battle of the Donbas, for which they have long prepared.”
US to begin training Ukrainians on howitzer cannons in next days
The United States plans to begin training Ukrainians on how to operate howitzer artillery systems in the coming days, a senior US defence official has said.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the howitzer training would take place outside Ukraine.
The Biden administration recently announced a new $800m weapons package for Ukraine to help the country bolster its defences against an expected Russian offensive in the east. Read more here.
Ukraine says it has seen signs Russian offensive in east has begun
Ukraine’s armed forces command has said it believed that Russia had started a new push for control of the east, increasing the intensity of attacks.
“This morning [Monday], along almost the entire frontline of Donetsk, Luhansk and Kharkiv regions, the occupiers attempted to break through our defences,” Security Council Secretary Oleksiy Danilov said in televised comments.
That was echoed by the governor of the Luhansk region, Sergiy Gaiday. “It’s hell. The offensive has begun, the one we’ve been talking about for weeks. There’s constant fighting in Rubizhne and Popasna, fighting in other peaceful cities,” he said on Facebook.
Welcome to Al Jazeera’s continuing coverage of the war in Ukraine.
Read all the updates from Monday, April 18 here.
