Kyiv, 30 October 2024 (dpa/MIA) - Heavy fighting continued in eastern Ukraine on Tuesday, following an admission late Monday by a Ukrainian general that the eastern front near Donetsk has effectively collapsed as troops suffer from exhaustion.

Tuesday's fighting was particularly heavy in Kupiansk in the north-eastern Ukrainian region of Kharkiv and in Kurakhove in the southern Donetsk region. In total, there have been 158 skirmishes over the course of the day, the General Staff in Kiev said in its evening report.

In the Kupiansk area, a strategically important railway junction on the Oskil River, Russian troops reportedly attempted 22 advances. Seventeen attacks were repelled, while five assaults were still ongoing, according to the General Staff.

"The enemy continues to focus its main efforts on the Kurakhove area," said the report. It was stated that there had been 42 skirmishes there, of which 32 were said to have been repelled so far. In the neighbouring front section of Pokrovsk, there are reports of fighting around the town of Selydove. The Russian military had previously announced the capture of the town.

The battles come after Major General Dmytro Marchenko, who gained a name for himself with the successful defence of Mykolaiv and Kherson in southern Ukraine at the start of the war, told a former parliamentary deputy in an interview that the eastern front near Donetsk had effectively collapsed.

"We all know that I'm not revealing any military secrets when I say that our front has collapsed," Marchenko said in the interview published late on Monday.

Marchenko attributed the situation to a lack of arms and ammunition and to a lack of troops. "The soldiers are tired. They cannot cover the front line where they are stationed," he said. Poor leadership was also to blame, he said.

Russia nuclear drills

Russia has begun another exercise of its strategic nuclear arsenal on the orders of President Vladimir Putin, the Kremlin announced on Tuesday.

Putin followed the "strategic deterrence" drills by video link, the Kremlin said.

Military officials said the exercises featured submarines and missile-carrying bombers. An intercontinental ballistic missile was also test-launched.

Defence Minister Andrei Belousov said the forces "will practice
delivering a massive nuclear strike in retaliation to an
enemy nuclear strike," according to the state-run TASS news agency.

Kharkiv missile attack

At least four people have been killed in a Russian missile attack on the east Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov reported on Telegram on Tuesday.

Four buildings were destroyed and a further 19 damaged in the overnight attack, he said.

Ukraine has been fighting off a full-scale Russian invasion since February 2022.

North Korean foreign minister visits Russia again

North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui visited Russia for the second time this year and was welcomed in the eastern port city of Vladivostok on Tuesday before travelling on to Moscow, Russia's state-owned TASS news agency reported.

The visit came amid reports of thousands of North Korean troops being despatched towards Russia's border with Ukraine. NATO confirmed the presence of the soldiers earlier this week.

The visit is reported to be aimed at promoting the strategic cooperation agreed between Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un.