Russian offensive in eastern Ukraine has begun, says Zelensky

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says Russia’s offensive to take control of eastern Ukraine is in full swing

Russia launched its long-feared, full-scale offensive to take control of Ukraine's east, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced Monday.

“Now we can already state that the Russian troops have begun the battle for the Donbas, for which they have been preparing for a long time," he said in a video address. Zelensky said a "significant part of the entire Russian army is now concentrated on this offensive.”

The Donbas is Ukraine’s mostly Russian-speaking industrial heartland in the east, where Moscow-backed separatists have been fighting Ukrainian forces for the past eight years and have declared two independent republics that have been recognized by Russia.

In recent weeks, Kremlin declared the capture of the Donbas its main goal of the war after its attempt to storm Kyiv failed.

“No matter how many Russian troops are driven there, we will fight,” Zelenskyy vowed. "We will defend ourselves. We will do it every day.”

The announcement from Zelensky came as Russia bombarded the western city of Lviv and numerous other targets across Ukraine in what appeared to be an intensified bid to grind down the country's defenses. At the same time, the Kremlin continued building up its forces in the east.

Zelensky submitted a filled-out questionnaire in the first step toward obtaining membership in the European Union — a desire that has been a source of tension with Moscow for years.