Ukrainian troops there say they find themselves in a pivotal moment. A Russian assault on the strategically important city of Severodonetsk could force them to withdraw, Ukrainian officials have said. The city is among the last remaining under Ukrainian control in Luhansk, which together with Donetsk makes up Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region.

On Sunday, Serhiy Haidai, the governor of Luhansk, dismissed Russian claims of having captured the last swaths of Severodonetsk. He said Russia’s forces were operating from a hotel on the outskirts of the city and had so far failed to advance into residential areas.

“Severodonetsk is under Ukrainian control,” he said in an online post. “The enemy is having no success.”…

The war of attrition is coming at a high cost not only for Ukraine, but also for Russia. Ukraine’s General Staff on Sunday claimed Russia had already lost 30,150 troops in just over three months of war, though Western officials estimate the Russian death toll at around half that number. Moscow cited 1,351 deaths in its most recent update, on March 25.