Russian forces struggle to make headway in eastern Ukraine

Moscow is hungry for some battlefield success after months of setbacks

A house damaged by Russian shelling in the city centre of Bakhmut, Donetsk region, Ukraine (Libkos/AP)

Russian forces are still trying to punch through Ukraine’s defences in eastern areas of the country, the Ukrainian General Staff said, as Moscow’s invasion[/url[] struggles to gain momentum almost a year after it began.

Russian artillery, drones and missiles have been relentlessly pounding Ukrainian-held eastern areas for months, indiscriminately hitting civilian targets and wreaking destruction, as the war largely slowed to a grinding stalemate in the winter.