Russia applies more pressure, fierce fighting in Donetsk, Zelenskiy says

Ukraine's President Zelenskiy attends a joint news briefing with Poland's President Duda and Lithuanian President Nauseda in Lviv
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy attends a joint news briefing with Poland's President Andrzej Duda and Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Lviv, Ukraine January 11, 2023. REUTERS/Pavlo Palamarchuk

Feb 5 (Reuters) - Fierce battles are raging in eastern Ukraine's Donetsk region as Russia intensifies pressure before the first anniversary of its invasion of Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Sunday.

"Things are very difficult in Donetsk region - fierce battles," Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address. "But however difficult it is and however much pressure there is, we must endure ... We have no alternative to defending ourselves and winning."

Russia, he said, was applying increased pressure to "make up for its defeats last year. We see that on various sectors of the front and also pressure in terms of information."

Reporting by Ron Popeski and Nick Starkov; editing by Grant McCool

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