6:26 a.m. - "Some successes" in Severodonetsk according to Zelensky but the city still remains "the most challenging area."
"We had some success in the battle to severodonetsk. It is still too early. "This is the most difficult region at the moment," Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukrainian President, said Thursday evening. He was referring to similar situations in the area, especially in Lyssytchansk, Bakhmout.
He said that the Donbass region in general had not changed significantly over the course of the day. He stated earlier that the situation was "really difficult (...) We lose 60 to 100 soldiers per day in action and 500 are injured."
5:50 a.m. : Be prepared for a "war on attrition" in the "long-term"
After meeting with Joe Biden, NATO Secretary General Jens Steltenberg visited Washington. He stated that the West must be prepared for a "war of attrition" in the long-term.
The head of American diplomacy Antony Blinken said Wednesday that the conflict would last for "many months".
5:47 a.m.: Severodonetsk - new Mariupol
The Russian forces have now shifted their focus to the conquest and control of Donbass (east), where a war against attrition is being waged, especially around Severodonetsk, after the failed lightning offensive to overthrow the government in Kiev. Moscow's steamroller strategy of slowly gaining ground seems to be paying off.
According to Sergei Gaidai (the governor of Lugansk Region), the city is "80%" occupied by Russian forces. Fighting is raging on the streets. . Recent statements by Ukrainian leaders accuse Moscow of trying to make Severodonetsk "a new Mariupol".
Russian pressure remains strong on Donetsk and the other Donbass regions, in particular Sloviansk (about 80 km west from Severodonetsk). According to kyiv, residents of the region are without electricity, water, and gas.
5:46 a.m. - Russia controls 20% of Ukraine
The Russian forces now control 20% of Ukraine's territory (or nearly 125,000km2), three months after the invasion began, said Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukrainian President. Since the 2014 annexation and capture of a third in Donbass, 43,000 km2 was controlled by Russian or pro-Russian forces. They have made notable advances in the east and south since February 24, along the Black and Azov Seas. Now they control a strategic coastal corridor that links the Russian east to Crimea.
5:45 AM: Good morning everyone! This live will cover the current situation in Ukraine on the 100th anniversary of the Russian invasion.
