Kyiv – Moscow ended self-declared Christmas truce, vowing to push on with combat until it reaches a victory over Ukraine, bombing regions in eastern Ukraine leaving two people dead overnight.
Ukraine had rejected the temporary Russian truce, and the general staff of Ukraine's armed forces said Russian troops had shelled dozens of positions and settlements along the front line on Saturday.
Most Ukrainian Orthodox Christians have traditionally celebrated Christmas on Jan. 7, as have Orthodox Christians in Russia. But this year, the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, the country's largest, allowed also for a Dec. 25 celebration. Still, many observed the holiday on Saturday, flocking into churches and cathedrals.
"The tasks set by the president (Putin) for the special military operation will still be fulfilled," the Russian state TASS agency quoted Putin's first deputy chief of staff, Sergei Kiriyenko, as saying. "And there definitely will be a victory."
The war has killed tens of thousands and displaced millions of Ukrainians.
Ukrainian officials reported blasts in regions that make up the broader Donbas region - the war's frontline where fighting has been raging for months.
Blasts were also heard in the city of Zaporizhzhia, the administrative centre of the Zaporizhzhia region, a local official said, without giving any immediate report on damage or casualties.
Shellfire echoed on Saturday around the near-deserted streets of Bakhmut, an eastern city that is currently the focus of the most intense fighting.
With night-time temperatures dipping to minus 15-17 Celsius degrees (5 to 1 Fahrenheit), fighting activity would soon increase as hard frosts mean it is easier to move heavy equipment, Haidai added.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Wednesday that Russia is planning a major new offensive. The Pentagon said on Friday that Putin's aim of seizing Ukrainian territory has not changed, even if his military continues to suffer blows.
There has been growing concerns that Belarus - a staunch backer of Moscow - could be used as a staging post to attack Ukraine from the north after increasing military activity in the country and fresh transfer of Russian troops there.
Unofficial Telegram channels monitoring military activity in Belarus reported late on Saturday that some 1,400-1,600 Russian troops arrived from Russia into the northeastern city of Vitebsk in Belarus over the past two days.
-Reuters