Russia advances in Sievierodonetsk as Ukraine tries to reinforce beleaguered troops

William Brangham:

President Biden today said the U.S. will not supply Ukraine with rockets that can reach into Russia, a statement that could aim to ease tensions with Moscow.

Meanwhile, Russian military forces continued their push in East Ukraine. They are making headway into the key city of Sievierodonetsk and threatening the neighboring town of Lysychansk.

Dan Rivers of Independent Television News was just there and has our report.

Dan Rivers:

In the most consequential part of the Donbas battlefield, Ukraine is trying to reinforce increasingly beleaguered troops. The supply route is shelled every day, so the Ukrainians have had to adapt.

The drive to Lysychansk means going cross-country through an artillery shooting gallery. Soon, you glimpse the consequences of Putin's heavy weapons, inside, a city surrounded on three sides on the Russians. Their proximity is evident on every street.

A few hardened souls hang on here, despite the daily torment of artillery.

Sergey Krivosheya, Lysychansk Resident (through translator):

We are living OK, but there is no water, no gas, no electricity. What can you say? We are just surviving.

Dan Rivers:

This isn't quite a siege yet, but people feel besieged without the basics of life. The Russians are advancing toward them and flattening homes at random during artillery duels which make survival a question of luck.

I found Valentina Kopaneva clinging on in her house, praying God will spare her the fate of her neighbors, who was killed. There are only eight people left on her street.

How are you?

She says:

"The best, better than anyone else, with all this music."

You have got Russian music, special Russian music?

"Yes, yes," she says, "every single day and night."

She is referring to the daily rhythm of small-arms fire and explosions which echo through Lysychansk and its twin city across the valley.

Over here is the city of Sievierodonetsk, which is now half-occupied by the Russians. You can see where the battle is raging and smoke filling the entire valley here. And you just got to wonder how long that they can hold on, the Ukrainians, there before finally the Russians come up to the river.

Today, Russian state TV released footage it claims is inside Sievierodonetsk, showing its soldiers recovering what appears to be a Western-supplied anti-tank weapon. These images will be difficult to stomach for the authorities in Kyiv, who are watching Russians slowly gaining ground and removing all trace of the Ukrainian state.

The Russian advance is forcing some families to leave neighboring Lysychansk, a few bags and a cherished companion. Ukraine's modern-day evacuees are dispatched with a prayer for safe delivery.

Rima Nestarenko, Lysychansk Evacuee (through translator):

I have only one grandson. I don't know if we will get out safely. I told him a long time ago to leave, but he refused.

Dan Rivers:

On the edge of town, the police show me how the bodies are arriving faster than they can bury them, 175 individuals interred without a funeral or headstone, some cut down by Russian shelling, some from natural causes, but all denied the dignity in death they deserve by a war which appears ever closer to overwhelming this city.

William Brangham:

That was Dan Rivers of Independent Television News.