Russian forces bear down on Ukraine town in Kharkiv

Russian forces attacking Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region were engaged in fighting on the outskirts of the border town of Vovchansk, Kyiv's troops said, as President Volodymyr Zelenskiy described heavy fighting there and in the east.

Moscow troops entered into the Kharkiv region on Friday, opening a northeastern front in the 27-month war that has long been waged in the south and east. Kharkiv, Ukraine's second largest city, is 30km from the Russian border.

Earlier on Sunday, Ukrainian commander-in-chief Alexander Syrsky, too, said Ukrainian forces were faced with a difficult situation in the Kharkov Region. The Ukrainian authorities have been evacuating people from the northeastern region, including Volchansk, for more than two days already. So far, more than 4,500 residents have been evacuated from local settlements, according to the State Emergency Service of Ukraine.