Ukraine: Russia's military has entered the outskirts of key Donbas city, governor says

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Depleted Russian tanks show Ukraine's military power

Ukrainian people look at destroyed Russian tanks as a sign of hope and moral victory

Russian forces have entered the outskirts of Sievierodonetsk, a major city in Ukraine’s Donbas region, that has been a military objective of Russia in recent weeks, an official said.

Governor Serhiy Gaidai of Luhansk, which is just over 50 miles away, said Russian forces advanced into the city’s eastern side after an assault earlier in the day left two civilians dead and wounded five others, Reuters reported.

A Ukrainian multiple rocket launcher BM-21 "Grad" shells a Russian troop position near Luhansk in the Donbas region on Sunday. (Photo by ANATOLII STEPANOV/AFP via Getty Images)

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Sunday the "liberation" of the Donbas region was an "unconditional priority" in the war, per the report.

Like in Mariupol before it, Ukrainian forces in Sievierodonetsk continue to resist Russia’s military dominance and have slowed Russia’s advance with their unwillingness to surrender even an inch of the city, according to the report.

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In an address to the country Sunday evening, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russian forces indiscriminately bombed the town as "some 90% of buildings are damaged."

"As a result of the Russian strikes at Severodonetsk, the entire critical infrastructure of the city has already been destroyed," Zelenskyy added. "More than two-thirds of the city's housing stock has been completely destroyed."

Zelesnkyy recognized capturing the town was a "fundamental task" for Russia’s military and "don't care how many lives they will have to pay for this attempt to raise the Russian flag" in its capital."

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy displayed on a screen as he addresses the audience from Kyiv on a screen during the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Monday, May 23, 2022. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

The Ukrainian president was not without hope and said his military was actively fighting to defend against Russia’s invasion.

"We are doing everything to repel this offensive," he said. "There was not a day that we did not try to find more weapons, more modern weapons to defend our land, to defend our people."

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"I am grateful to everyone who defends Severodonetsk and demonstrates to the occupiers that peace will still be ours. In all our state, in all Donbas and of course - in Severodonetsk," Zelenskyy continued.

A local resident walks next to a house destroyed in a Russian shelling in Kramatorsk, Ukraine, Wednesday, May 25, 2022.  ((AP Photo/Andriy Andriyenko))

Ukraine’s military successfully fended off Russia’s attempts to siege its capital city of Kyiv and has found success pushing Russian forces out of towns they once occupied.

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"The heroism our soldiers in Donbas show every day," Zelenskyy concluded. "This is our path. The path to ensure that the peace of life is always felt throughout Ukraine and that smiles always reign, not the roar of artillery."