Ukraine marches farther into liberated lands

Locals collect wood Monday from a destroyed school where Russian forces were based, in Izium. Pic/AP

Ukraine said its troops have marched farther east into territory recently abandoned by Russia, paving the way for a potential assault on Moscow's occupation forces in the Donbas region as Kyiv seeks more Western arms.

"The occupiers are clearly in a panic," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a televised address late on Monday, adding that he was now focused on "speed" in liberated areas. "The speed at which our troops are moving. The speed in restoring normal life," Zelensky said. He also hinted he would use a video address to the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday to call on countries to accelerate weapons and aid deliveries. "We are doing everything to ensure Ukraine's needs are met at all levels - defence, financial, economic, diplomatic," Zelensky said.

Russian-installed separatists in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region said on Tuesday they will stage a referendum on Sept 23-27 on joining Russia, and called on President Vladimir Putin to admit their territory to Russia as soon as possible after the vote.

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