Embattled city needs more Western weapons, says governor

UKRAINIAN fighters need more Western weapons to hold off Russian advances and prevent the fall of Severodonetsk, the governor of Luhansk last night told The Daily Telegraph.

Despite being outnumbered by five to one, Kyiv’s forces had been able to claw back control of a number of streets across the relatively small city amid fierce urban battles with their Russian enemy, Serhiy Haidai said. But the governor warned the Russian bombardment of the last major Ukrainian-held city in the Luhansk region was growing.

Moscow is seeking to take control of the oblast in time for its Russia Day celebrations on June 12.

“At the moment the intensity of the bombardments grows with every day,” the official said. “There was a rumour the Russians would try to completely control the whole region of Luhansk as Russians celebrate this national holiday... In my opinion, this will definitely not happen by June 12.” Ukrainian soldiers were yesterday locked in brutal battles against Russian forces continuing their advance into the centre of the city under the cover of heavy artillery and rocket fire.

Mr Haidai said Kyiv’s forces would only retreat if the city was razed to the ground by the Kremlin’s forces, leaving them with nothing to defend. He said the troops had been able to push back their Russian enemy with Western weapons, but deliveries had been slow.

“In terms of artillery and rocket systems, some things have arrived and are being used on the front line,” Luhansk’s governor said.

“But still this is really not enough and it is not being delivered fast enough to Ukraine. We need more and we need it to be done faster. That’s the key message.”

Kyiv was said to mainly control the outskirts of the eastern city, including the Azot chemical plant, where 800 civilians are sheltering from aerial bombardment. Mr Haidai denied that Moscow had seized control of the entire city with the exception of the industrial complex.

“Around 80 per cent of the residential area of the city is now controlled by Russian troops and 20 per cent controlled by Ukrainian troops,” he said.

“The situation is quite dynamic. Whenever one side captures a street it drastically changes the territories controlled by both parties.

“Russians are failing constantly to recapture Ukrainian positions. When they fail on the ground they start to shell the residential areas of the city to assist the ground troops in order to advance.”

Yesterday, Norway announced it would send 22 M109 self-propelled howitzer artillery systems to Kyiv.

Officials in the Ukrainian capital say that while over 100 howitzers have been donated by the UK, the US and Australia, the country needed another 700.