President Volodymyr Zelensky warned Ukrainians that Russia was throwing all its resources into a campaign to stop Kyiv's troops from pressing their counter offensive and a top general reported new progress on the southern front, Ednews reports citing Reuters.
But Ukrainian military analysts suggested that things were not easy for Ukrainian forces in their bid to advance southward.
Russian accounts said its forces had repelled Ukrainian attacks in eastern Donetsk region, including around Bakhmut.
"We must all understand very clearly, as clearly as possible, that Russian forces in our southern and eastern lands are doing everything they can in order to stop our soldiers," Zelensky said in his nightly video address after chairing a meeting with top commanders on Friday.