KYIV: Ukraine’s army chief said Wednesday the situation on the battlefield was “difficult” and that Russian forces could be poised to strike deep into Ukrainian lines in the eastern Donetsk region.
Kyiv’s forces are on the defensive across the 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front lines in the east and south after Moscow made its first territorial gains in almost a year.
Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrsky said he had visited two brigades “where the situation is gradually becoming more complicated and there is a threat of enemy units advancing deep into our battle formations.”
Ukraine is facing a shortage of both manpower and ammunition amid hold-ups to Western aid and a domestic debate over how to recruit more soldiers with the war now in its third year.
“In general, the operational situation on the eastern front remains difficult. The enemy continues to conduct offensive actions,” in a number of areas of the Donetsk region, Syrsky said in a post on Telegram.
“At the same time, probably due to the high level of losses, the activity of the enemy in other areas of the front decreased significantly,” he added, without providing further detail.
In an interview with French media on Monday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia’s advance had been “halted” in the east and that the situation was “much better” than it had been three months ago.
Russian forces captured the symbolic frontline town of Avdiivka, just outside the Russian-held city of Donetsk, in February after one of the bloodiest battles of the two-year war.
![]()
Ukraine’s army chief says battlefield situation ‘difficult’
Short Url
https://arab.news/p88na
Ukraine’s army chief says battlefield situation ‘difficult’
- Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrsky said he had visited two brigades “where the situation is gradually becoming more complicated”
- Ukraine is facing a shortage of both manpower and ammunition amid hold-ups to Western aid
Pope receives Venezuela opposition’s Machado: Vatican
VATICAN CITY: Pope Leo received Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado at the Vatican on Monday, the Holy See said.
There were no details about the audience, with the Vatican publishing Machado’s name in a list of people received by the US pope Monday morning.
The Vatican did not immediately respond to an AFP request for more information about the meeting.
The papal audience came the same day as Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani announced that two Italians, Alberto Trentini and Mario Burlo, held since November 2024 in Venezuela, had been released and were on their way home.
Machado, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in December, has been sidelined by Washington in the wake of the US intervention in Venezuela that toppled President Nicolas Maduro.
US President Donald Trump said on Thursday he would meet Machado this week after previously saying she did not have the respect or support within Venezuela to lead.
Leo, 70, called for Venezuela’s sovereignty to be protected in a speech to diplomats on Friday.
The Chicago-born pope issued an appeal “to respect the will of the Venezuelan people, and to safeguard the human and civil rights of all” following the suggestion by US President Donald Trump that the US could control the South American country for years.
The Vatican’s chief diplomat Pietro Parolin, a former papal envoy to Venezuela, spoke with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio last week.
The two discussed “efforts to improve the humanitarian situation, particularly in Venezuela,” the US Department of State said in a statement.
There were no details about the audience, with the Vatican publishing Machado’s name in a list of people received by the US pope Monday morning.
The Vatican did not immediately respond to an AFP request for more information about the meeting.
The papal audience came the same day as Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani announced that two Italians, Alberto Trentini and Mario Burlo, held since November 2024 in Venezuela, had been released and were on their way home.
Machado, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in December, has been sidelined by Washington in the wake of the US intervention in Venezuela that toppled President Nicolas Maduro.
US President Donald Trump said on Thursday he would meet Machado this week after previously saying she did not have the respect or support within Venezuela to lead.
Leo, 70, called for Venezuela’s sovereignty to be protected in a speech to diplomats on Friday.
The Chicago-born pope issued an appeal “to respect the will of the Venezuelan people, and to safeguard the human and civil rights of all” following the suggestion by US President Donald Trump that the US could control the South American country for years.
The Vatican’s chief diplomat Pietro Parolin, a former papal envoy to Venezuela, spoke with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio last week.
The two discussed “efforts to improve the humanitarian situation, particularly in Venezuela,” the US Department of State said in a statement.
Latest updates
© 2026 SAUDI RESEARCH & PUBLISHING COMPANY, All Rights Reserved And subject to Terms of Use Agreement.