Zelenskiy calls for reinforcement of eastern front against Russian advances

(Reuters) - President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called on Tuesday for major reinforcement of sectors in eastern Ukraine of the 1,000-km (600-mile) front line, where Russian forces have made consistent gains in recent months.

Zelenskiy issued his appeal as Russia's Defence Ministry said its troops had captured two new front-line villages -- one in Donetsk region, the main focus of the 33-month-old war, the other further south in Zaporizhzhia region.

The president was speaking in his nightly video address after a discussion with Ukraine's top commander, Oleksandr Syrskyi. He said much depended on Ukraine's Western allies providing vital weaponry in a timely manner.

"The Donetsk directions require significant reinforcement. This particularly involves the supply of weapons from our partners," Zelenskiy said.

"It's a direct relationship: The greater our army's firepower and technological capabilities, the more we can destroy Russia's offensive potential and protect the lives of our soldiers."

The key, he said, was to boost Ukraine's long-range capabilities, partly by boosting domestic weapons production.

The United States, the biggest supplier of military aid to Ukraine, announced its latest military aid package on Monday, valued at some $725 million. But Ukraine is concerned about the continued flow of weapons under President-elect Donald Trump, who has pledged to put a quick end to the war.

Analysts and war bloggers say that Russian forces in the east are advancing at the fastest rate since the early days of the February 2022 invasion.

Russia's Defence Ministry said its forces had captured the village of Romanivka, south of the embattled town of Kurakhove in Donetsk region. It also said Moscow's forces took control of Novodarivka, just over the border in Zaporizhzhia region.

The Ukrainian military's general staff said Russian forces had launched 38 attacks near Kurakhove, but made no mention of Romanivka. It said nothing about Novodarivka falling into Russian hands, but mentioned the village as one of the areas coming under Russian attack.

Zelenskiy, in a post on his Telegram account, quoted commander Syrskyi as saying conditions were difficult around Kurakhove and Pokrovsk, another target of Russian advances farther north.

But he also spoke of "quite good" results in defending Zaporizhzhia region.

(Reporting by Ron Popeski and Oleksandr Kozhukhar; Editing by Leslie Adler)