“Russia wants the war to drag on and exhaust our forces. So we have to make time our weapon. We have to speed up events, speed up supplies and open up new weapons options for Ukraine.”

 

The General Staff of Ukraine's armed forces said earlier on Sunday that its forces repelled an attack near Blahodatne in the eastern part of the Donetsk region, while Russia's Wagner private military group said it took control of the village.

 

A later military statement made no mention of Blahodatne.

 

Zelenskyy issued his latest appeal for increased weapons shipments days after Germany and the United States led a list of countries agreeing to supply modern tanks.

 

Zelenskyy on Saturday said Ukraine needed the US-made ATACMS missile with a range of about 300 km, which Washington has so far declined to supply. A presidential adviser said talks were under way on supplying long-range missiles and a Ukrainian air force spokesman spoke of negotiations on providing aircraft.

 

In his latest remarks, Zelenskyy Ukraine's command was committed to ensuring that “our pressure is greater than the occupiers' capacity to attack” and that meant “maintaining the defense support from our partners”.

 

“The enemy takes no account of its personnel and despite the extent of the losses is maintaining the intensity of its attacks,” he said.

 

“Confronting this requires extraordinary resilience and a full awareness by our soldiers that in defending Donetsk region they are defending all of Ukraine.”