SLOVYANSK, Ukraine—Russian forces saved up artillery strikes in japanese Ukraine on Saturday, whereas the defending troops braced for what Ukrainian officers anticipate might be a brand new push towards this almost empty metropolis the place separatists helped kick off the Moscow-backed rebellion in Ukraine eight years in the past.
Russian troops have lobbed artillery shells and missiles into Slovyansk and surrounding cities over the previous day, maintaining strain on a closely fortified foothold nonetheless held by Ukrainian troops within the Donetsk area.
