Russian forces have shelled the entire front line in the Donetsk region in Eastern Ukraine, as part of what appeared to be the Kremlin’s scaled-back ambition to secure only the bulk of lands it has claimed, Reuters reported. The fiercest fighting was in the towns of Bakhmut and Avdiivka. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine claims that the Ukrainian forces have managed to repel Russian advance in seven settlements. According to Russian sources, the Ukrainian army counterattacked five settlements near Bakhmut, but the Russian forces managed to repel these attacks.

Thousands of households in and around the capital city Kyiv, as well as in Odessa and Dnipro, remain without electricity after the Russian attacks.  According to military experts, neither Ukraine nor Russia have yet been able to achieve convincing success in Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

On December 8, the Russian army sent reinforcements to the town of Svatove, Luhansk region, to defend against Ukrainian counteroffensive operation. According to the Institute for the Study of War, the Russian army is trying to increase its activity near Svatove to resist the expected advance of Ukrainian forces.