KYIV – Ukrainian troops, reeling from losing a key town, now face “extremely difficult” conditions all along the front line with Russia because of delayed foreign aid, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Feb 19.

A heightened Russian offensive in eastern and southern Ukraine saw them capture the key town of Avdiivka last week in a major boost ahead of the second anniversary of the February 2022 invasion.

The Ukrainian military said it is critically short of ammunition and shells, worsened by the hold-up of a US$60 billion (S$80.8 billion) United States aid package.

“The situation is extremely difficult in several parts of the front line, where Russian troops have concentrated maximum reserves,” Mr Zelensky said after visiting front-line troops in the Kharkiv region.

Russian troops “are taking advantage of the delays in helping Ukraine”, he added, highlighting shortages of artillery, front-line air defence and longer-range weapons.

Ukrainian commanders had predicted Russia would move troops from Avdiivka to other parts of the front line.

Ukrainian troops said they were facing “heavy fire” from advancing Russian forces in the southern Zaporizhzhia region.

The senior commander, General Oleksandr Tarnavsky, said Russia was launching multiple attacks near the village of Robotyne – one of the few places where Ukraine regained ground during a counter-offensive in 2023.

“These offensive attempts are being halted, the enemy is being eliminated in the outskirts of Robotyne,” Gen Tarnavsky said in a post on messaging app Telegram.

Reports from Russian military bloggers had earlier said Moscow’s forces were in the southern edges of the village.

Like many settlements across eastern Ukraine, Robotyne has been completely flattened by months of artillery fire.

Now towns like Selydove, 30km from Avdiivka, fear they could be next in line for a Russian offensive. Increasing numbers of Selydove residents are leaving the town, inhabitants said.

US President Joe Biden told Mr Zelensky on Feb 18 that he was “confident” the Republican-dominated US Congress would approve the critically needed aid.

Mr Biden has said another Ukrainian town could fall to Russia without the aid.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said on Feb 20 that he also believed Congress would come through after it returned from recess and that his country would “continue our fight” with international support.

“I believe the US will support Ukraine also, like the European Union, like Japan, like all the Group of Seven countries and the International Monetary Fund and all international financial organisations,” Mr Shmyhal told a press conference in Tokyo when asked about “Ukraine fatigue” in the international community.

“So we can’t speak about fatigue, because it’s an existential war – you can’t be fatigued when you’re fighting for your future, for your life... for global security order,” he said.

Mr Biden said on Feb 19 that he was willing to meet House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson to discuss the funding Bill, adding that Republicans are making a mistake by opposing the aid package.

The Senate in February passed a US$95 billion aid package that includes funds for Ukraine, but Mr Johnson has declined to bring it up for a vote on the floor of the House, which Republicans control by a 219-212 margin.

Ukraine also faces a different frontier assault, with Polish farmers and truckers trying to block the border, accusing Ukrainian counterparts of undermining their business.

Polish farmers called for a halt to all border traffic on Feb 20 as they step up a battle with their government over their conditions.

The row has strained relations between the neighbours, even though Poland has been one of Ukraine’s staunchest supporters since Russia invaded in February 2022.

“Things that are happening on our western border, the border with Poland, cannot be considered normal or ordinary,” Mr Zelensky said, adding the situation “demonstrates the erosion of solidarity on a daily basis”.

Road traffic into Poland has been an export lifeline for Ukrainian companies since the invasion blocked major trading routes through the Black Sea.

But the increased shipments have angered Polish logistics companies and farmers, who say they are losing business.

Six border crossings were being blocked on the Polish side, according to Ukrainian Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov.

“Blocking the border is a direct threat to the security of a defending country,” Mr Kubrakov said on Facebook.

“They are blocking everything. There are trucks with fuel. There were cases a few days ago when protestors didn’t let several trucks with weapons pass,” he told state TV.

On Feb 19, 11 Ukrainian children set off from Russia to Ukraine to be reunited with their families in a transfer mediated by Qatar.

Ukraine said 20,000 children have been forced to Russia since the war started. Russia denies the accusations, but 59 children have returned since the Qatar scheme started in October.

The International Committee of the Red Cross said meanwhile that it was seeking information on 23,000 people who have disappeared in the chaos of Russia’s war in Ukraine. AFP, REUTERS