Russian troops attempting advance from north into Donbass, Kyiv says

Russian troops are attempting to further advance into the Donbass region from the north in order to surround Ukrainian forces stationed there, according to Ukrainian sources.

Individual armoured and infantry units and paratroopers struck targets along the front line between Izyum and Barvenkov, the Ukrainian General Staff said in its situation report on Tuesday.

To aid these efforts, "the occupiers moved batteries of Tyulpan heavy mortars of 240-millimetre calibre and Smerch rocket launchers from the Belgorod region to the Izyum area," the report said.

Russian troops were also attacking the towns of Lyman, Sievierodonetsk, Popasna, Avdiivka and Kurakhove, to press ahead with their offensive towards Lyman-Siversk and Slovyansk, the report said, adding that it remained unclear whether they had made any territorial gains.