"In the Kharkiv region, our forces are destroying the occupier, the results are tangible," Zelensky said during his night address.

At the same time, he specified that the situation remained "extremely difficult" in the areas of Pokrovsk, Kramatorsk and Kurakhove, in the Donetsk region, in eastern Ukraine, where he indicated that "most of the fighting is currently taking place".

Since the beginning of its offensive on May 10, Russian forces have managed to capture several localities in the Kharkiv region, which borders Russia, which led Kiev to send reinforcements, at a time when it faces a shortage of soldiers and military equipment.

Previously, Zelensky warned that this could be the "first wave" of a broader offensive, in particular to take Kharkiv, the capital of the region of the same name and the second largest city in Ukraine.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said last week that the aim was to create a "buffer zone" on Ukrainian territory to end the shelling in the border areas.

The spokesman for the Ukrainian forces in Kharkiv, Nazar Volochyn, also indicated on television today that Kiev's troops managed to "stabilize the situation in this region, particularly in the city of Vovchansk", which has been the center of the fighting.

"The fighting continues in the north of the city of Vovchansk and in the Starytsia sector. The situation is under control," the Ukrainian General Staff said this afternoon.

Volodymyr Zelensky, however, pointed out in his night speech that difficult fighting was still taking place in the east of the country, in the Donetsk region.

"The Pokrovsk sector and other sectors of the Donetsk region - Kramatorsk, Kurakhove - remain extremely difficult at this time, most of the fighting is currently taking place there," he explained.

According to the Ukrainian General Staff, in its afternoon briefing, the Russian Army maintains a "high level of intensity" in the Pokrovsk sector and made 27 attempts during the day to break through the Ukrainian defenses.

"The situation remains tense, but under control," the Ukrainian command assured.

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