Zelensky visits south front as battles for Donbas rage on

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky visited the war-torn southern frontline on Saturday for the first time since the Russian invasion as "fierce battles" raged again in the eastern Donbas region. Making a rare trip outside Kyiv where he is based for security reasons, Zelensky travelled to the hold-out Black Sea city of Mykolaiv and visited troops nearby and in the neighbouring Odesa region.

Russian forces have directed their firepower on the east and south of Ukraine in recent weeks since failing in their bid to take the capital Kyiv after the lightning February 24 invasion. "It is important that you are alive. As long as you live there is a strong Ukrainian wall that protects our country," Zelensky told soldiers in the Odesa region. "I want to thank you from the people of Ukraine, from our state for the great work you are doing, for your impeccable service." Mykolaiv is a key target for Russia as it lies on the way to the strategic Black Sea port of Odesa. It is around 100km northwest of Kherson, which fell to Russia in the first weeks of the war.