Russia-Ukraine war – live: Kyiv’s troops dig in as Putin’s forces make advances around key city in east

Ukrainian troops have dug in along the eastern front as Russian forces made minor gains in their attempts to take a key city along that line. Under the Russian army chief Valery Gerasimov, a general known for his appetite for heavy, vehicle-driven assaults, Russian forces have been attempting to double-envelope the city of Avdiivka in Donetsk Oblast. Footage posted by Ukrainian drone pilots two days ago confirmed that Russian troops had made advances seven kilometres northwest of Avdiivka. But to the immediate west of Avdiivka, more footage showed at least 20 Russian armoured vehicles piled up after being struck by Ukrainian counter battery fire. The Russian assault on the eastern Ukrainian city has been costly for the attacking forces. Ukrainian General Valery Zaluzhny said last week that they believed Russia had lost over 100 tanks and 250 armoured vehicles in the past six weeks through their Avdiivka assault alone. Read More World’s attention must ‘stay on Ukraine’, warns ex-Nato chief 'You’ll die in this pit': Takeaways from secret recordings of Russian soldiers in Ukraine Dead, wounded or AWOL: The voices of desperate Russian soldiers trying to get out of the Ukraine war Kyiv hit by biggest Russian drone attack since war began