Russian forces attempt to seize Severodonetsk, one of the largest cities in the east under Ukrainian control. If Russia took the city, it would occupy almost all of Luhansk, an important part of the Donbass region. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Moscow’s combat power was at “maximum” in its push to capture the area.

Severodonetsk: “Most” of this beleaguered city is controlled by Russian forces, Serhiy Hadai, the region’s military administration chief, said in a Telegram update – up from around half previously – although he said the town was “not surrounded”. The city’s critical infrastructure has been destroyed and the majority of its homes are damaged, about 60 percent of them beyond repair, Hadai said. It is “impossible” to bring in humanitarian aid or get people out because of Russian bombing, he said.

Donbas region: Russia must seize the Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk and a key road linking the cities of Dnipro and Donetsk to achieve its likely goal of seizing the entire eastern Ukrainian provinces of Lugansk and Donetsk, the UK Ministry of Defence. said in an intelligence update on Tuesday. Severodonetsk is about 45 miles northeast of Kramatorsk.

Kharkiv region: Photos showed buses evacuating people on Monday from the town of Kupiansk, on the outskirts of Kharkiv. Reuters reported that the city was under the control of Russian troops. Kremlin forces have been prevented from seizing Ukraine’s second-largest city, but they occupy about a third of the wider Kharkiv region, according to the regional military administrator.

Kherson region: Ukrainian and Russian forces are jostling for control of parts of this southern area, where Ukraine aims to disrupt the Russian front line, according to the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank. The Ukrainian counter-attacks are, however, limited in scope and the institute’s analysts do not think they will be able to retake the city of Kherson, which fell under Russian occupation at the start of the war. A local separatist leader said the port city had started shipping grain to Moscow – amid a Russian blockade of Ukrainian grain exports elsewhere.

Amy Cheng, Andrew Jeong and Morgan Coates contributed to this report.