Russia uses small-group tactics in Avdiivka sector, trying to advance - Ukrainian officer

He said this on the Espreso TV channel.

"Russians are making attempts to advance in the Avdiivka sector. Currently, the enemy is active in small groups of 4-5 people. The occupiers' task is to get to some point, whether it is a basement or any other room, and gain a foothold there. This is the task set by the Russian command. This is how they want to advance and achieve some goals," Tsehotskyi said.

According to him, the Ukrainian Armed Forces are constantly detecting the Russian forces' attempts to advance and destroying them.

"Recently, an enemy group was moving in the area of Pervomaiske. We have already captured two of them, we are still hunting for the rest. The situation is tense everywhere. The enemy is demoralising the society by constantly shelling the settlements. S-300s are also constantly attacking. The enemy is hitting our positions with anti-aircraft missiles. The Russians probably hope that this will somehow demoralise us and we will retreat. But nothing of the sort is happening. The Ukrainian Armed Forces know their task. We are strengthening the defence lines, and we are doing this work day and night. We are also creating various "surprises" for the enemy, including remote mining," he added.

• ISW has identified a direction where Russia could launch a new large-scale offensive.