Ukrainian troops have repulsed several Russian assaults in the country's east, the focus of a new offensive by the invading forces, British intelligence said on Monday, while President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said this week will be crucial to the course of the war.
Austrian leader Karl Nehammer planned to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Monday and will call for an end to the conflict. It would be Putin's first face-to-face meeting with a European Union leader since Russia's invasion started on Feb. 24.
Russian forces were also pushing their offensive to establish control over the southern port city of Mariupol, a key target whose capture would link up areas of Russian control to the west and east.