February 28, 2023 - Russia-Ukraine news

A doctor who is still in the city of Bakhmut has told CNN she is very scared by the constant shelling and the sound of the fighting.

Elena Molchanova continues to work in Bakhmut even as the fighting comes closer to the city, which is virtually cut off from humanitarian relief.

"I'm really scared. But I'm sure everything will be OK," she said.

She said people with heart problems and those needing bandaging after an injury were those who most often came for help. She said she changes dressings for those who have been hurt.

Molchanova said that food and water were no longer being brought to the city. "Volunteers are coming very rarely." She said she has some stock left and can survive.

Before the war, Molchanova worked as a specialist in infectious diseases, but now she treats patients as a general practitioner. 

She spoke to CNN via text message as calls from the city are difficult because of a lack of connections.

There are thought to be several thousand civilians still in Bakhmut, though the exact number is unknown. Routes into and out of the city have become much more dangerous in recent weeks, with several aid missions coming under fire. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday it is important for Russia to establish and strengthen resources of Russian security entities in the regions he proclaimed annexed from Ukraine. 

"It is worth paying increased attention to the formation of security agencies in the Luhansk People's Republic (LPR), Donetsk People's Republic (DPR), Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions. Strengthen their operational staff resources," Putin said in opening remarks at a Federal Security Service (FSB) meeting. 

Key background: In late September 2022, Putin proclaimed Russia would seize of nearly a fifth of Ukraine, following so-called referendums in the regions that were universally dismissed as “shams” by Ukraine and Western nations.

Under the annexation process, which is illegal under international law, Moscow recognized four Ukrainian regions as Russian territory: Luhansk and Donetsk – home to two Russian-backed breakaway republics where fighting has been ongoing since 2014 – as well as Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, despite Ukraine controlling parts of those regions.

CNN's Joshua Berlinger, Anna Chernova and Tim Lister contributed to this post.

Ukrainian soldiers in Bakhmut describe a worsening situation on the ground as Russian forces continue to apply pressure to capture the eastern Ukrainian city.

The soldier refuted Russian claims that Ukrainian forces in Bakhmut had been cut off and were unable to get supplies into the city. ��

“The Khromove [settlement] is the key for the defense of the city. When it is captured, only one Bakhmut - Kostiantynivka road will remain to supply the city,” the soldier explained. “It is already under the enemy's fire control, and if the enemy captures it, supplies will be impossible.”

Despite the challenges, the soldier said Ukrainian forces would defend the city as long as possible. “The city will be defended until the end, no matter what.”

"We all understand that we are holding on and dying to win time for a counteroffensive in the spring,” the soldier also said. “We cannot give up every city without a fight.”

Another soldier referenced only by his call-sign Kyivan, described a similar situation in a video posted on social media.

“As of the morning of February 28, the situation around the defense of Bakhmut is quite difficult,” Kyivan, who used to be based in Bakhmut said, citing information he is getting from colleagues inside the city. A third soldier speaking alongside Kyivan described the battles in Bakhmut as “hellish,” but added that Ukrainian soldiers were “holding everything.”

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday reiterated the Biden administration’s concern that China is considering providing lethal aid to Russia for its war in Ukraine and warned that Beijing would face consequences for such a move.

“We did very clearly warn China about the implications and consequences of going through with providing such support,” Blinken said at a press conference in Kazakhstan. “We will not hesitate, for example, to target Chinese companies or individuals that violate our sanctions, or otherwise engaged in supporting the Russian war effort.”

Blinken said he raised the issue “directly” with China’s top diplomat Wang Yi when he saw him on the margins of the Munich Security Conference, and US President Joe Biden raised it with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Indonesia in November.

If China were to support Russia's war efforts, it would create a "serious problem" for US-China relationship as well as China's relationships with other countries around the world, Blinken said, adding that he hopes China will take US warnings seriously and refrain from helping Russia.

Russian President Vladimir Putin admitted to "losses in our ranks" while thanking members of the Federal Security Service (FSB) for fighting extremism inside the country, as well as working in claimed Russian-occupied territories.

"Unfortunately, there are losses in our ranks," he said at the start of an FSB meeting. "The leadership of the FSB must do everything to provide additional support to the families of our fallen comrades."

Putin said that "2022 was a special year for the whole country and for your service."

"The FSB units were directly involved in the special military operation, they were solving complex, non-standard operational tasks here, covering the state border, actively fighting terrorism, organized crime, corruption, and extremism," he claimed. 

Putin's "special military operation" is the euphemism the Russian president and leadership uses to describe the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

"I would like to thank the management and all employees of the department, especially those who acted at the forefront, in the liberated territories, in the frontline zone and, I would add, behind enemy lines. I want to thank you for this work, dear comrades," he said. 

In November 2022, US Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. Mark Milley said Russia has likely suffered more than 100,000 killed and wounded soldiers as a result of the war in Ukraine, and Ukraine is probably looking at similar numbers.

The eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut continues to come under attack from Russian forces, and a local pro-Russian official has claimed "it is already clear that Ukraine has lost" the city.

Meanwhile, the airport serving the Russian city of St. Petersburg has reopened following an unexplained temporary closure, and hackers caused Russian radios and TVs to play air raid sirens.

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Russian forces control routes into Bakhmut and it’s only a matter of time until the city falls into Russian hands, according to an adviser to the head of self-declared, pro-Russian Donetsk People’s Republic.

“Now the fighters are already working in the city, almost in the central district, they have approached it,” Yan Gagin told Russian state broadcaster Russia 1 on Tuesday.

“There is almost complete control of all the routes along which either new fighters for rotation, ammunition or new equipment can be brought in," he said.

“It is already clear that Ukraine has lost Artemovsk (the Russian name for Bakhmut). The only question is when it will happen,” added Gagin.

CNN could not independently verify Gagin’s claims, but Ukrainian military commanders have in the past 24 hours described a worsening situation in Bakhmut, calling it “extremely tense” and “extremely difficult.”

Ukrainian President Zelensky said in his nightly address on Monday that the situation in the Eastern Ukrainian city was getting “more and more challenging.”

"The enemy is constantly destroying everything that can be used to protect our positions, to secure and defend it," Zelensky said, soon after military commanders spoke of hundreds of Russian strikes in the area.

Russia's new territorial "realities" cannot be infringed upon during possible talks with Kyiv, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Tuesday. 

"There are certain realities, I mean the new Russian territories, there is the Constitution of the Russian Federation, which cannot be ignored, which the Russian side will never be able to infringe upon. These are very important realities," Peskov told reporters during a regular call.

"The main thing is to achieve our goals, this is our priority for sure," he added. 

When asked how favorable the present moment is for these negotiations, Peskov replied:

"Currently, probably no one can ascertain the signals from the Ukrainian side. At the moment, we proceed from the impossibility de jure for the Ukrainian side to negotiate on this matter. We proceed from this."

German-made Leopard tanks have been spotted near Bakhmut, according to an advisor to the head of the self-declared pro-Russian Donetsk People’s Republic.

“There have been claims that Leopards have appeared near Artemovsk (the Russian name for Bakhmut),” Yan Gagin told state broadcaster Russia 1 on Tuesday.

Gagin went on to downplay the presence of the tanks near the frontline.

“There is no need to sensationalize this. Given the muddy weather now, it will make it difficult for heavy vehicles like the Leopard to move,” he said. “[It] is the same armored target as all the others.”

CNN could not independently verify Gagin’s claims, but European officials have said previously that the first donated Leopard 2 tanks have begun arriving in Ukraine.