Russia-Ukraine war enters second phase

Kyiv, Apr 19: The second phase of the war in Ukraine's east has begun. Kyiv has described the battle at Donbas as the second phase as Russia launched a fresh offensive in the east of the country.

Reports say that the Donetsk region frontline was rocked by powerful explosions with shelling taking place at Marinka, Slavyansk and Kramatorsk according to Reuters.

In his nightly address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the battle of Donbas has begun. A very large part of the Russian army is focused on that battle he also said.

No matter how many Russian troops they send, we will fight and defend ourselves, he also said.

Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden will hold a call with allies on Tuesday regarding the ongoing war. The White House has also clarified that President Biden will not be visiting Ukraine as had been reported in certain sections of the media.