Ukraine boosts eastern defences after Vuhledar falls as Rutte visits Kiev

Ukraine's armed forces commander General Oleksandr Syrskyi has said he had ordered defences to be strengthened in the eastern Donetsk region, a day after Kiev forces announced they had withdrawn from the town of Vuhledar.

On Thursday, Syrskyi said on social media that he was working on "one of the hottest front sectors" with the 25th Sicheslav Airborne Brigade.

He gave no details on the exact location but the brigade operates in the Pokrovsk front, an area of intensified Russian assaults.

"While working in the brigade, I made a number of decisions aimed at strengthening stability and effectiveness of our defence," Syrskyi said.

Russian troops are steadily moving forward in different sectors in eastern Ukraine despite Kiev's surprise incursion into Russia's western Kursk region in August that it was hoped would slow the advances.

More than 2/1-2 years into the full-scale war, Ukrainian troops are on the defensive. The Ukrainian military announced on Wednesday it was pulling troops out of the coal-mining town Vuhledar, a hilltop bastion that had resisted intense attacks following Russia's attacks on Ukraine in 2022.

NATO reaffirms support to Ukraine

NATO chief Mark Rutte, on the other hand, discussed the war in Ukraine and Kiev's "victory plan" with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Thursday after arriving in the Ukrainian capital on his first official trip since becoming the alliance's secretary general.

Zelenskyy told a joint press conference that he would like to see Kiev's allies shooting down Iranian missiles and drones used by Russia in attacks on Ukraine, as some of Israel's allies did when Tehran attacked Israel with missiles this week.

Zelenskyy also called on allies to allow deep strikes into Russia with weapons supplied by them, saying they were "delaying" their decision.

Allowing Kiev to hit targets deep inside Russia would boost its capabilities in disrupting Russian logistics and command chains. Wary of Russia's response, Ukraine's allies have held off on making such a move.

Rutte affirmed the Western defence alliance's commitment to Ukraine eventually becoming a member.

"Ukraine is closer to NATO than ever before, and it will continue along this path until it secures NATO membership," he said.