Ukraine and Russia: What you need to know right now

With a fresh blessing for its European Union ambitions and a promise of continued strong support from Britain, Ukraine kept fighting on Saturday, with Kyiv's troops holding out against Russian assault on a pivotal eastern city and communities pounded by more heavy shelling.

With a fresh blessing for its European Union ambitions and a promise of continued strong support from Britain, Ukraine kept fighting on Saturday, with Kyiv's troops holding out against Russian assault on a pivotal eastern city and communities pounded by more heavy shelling. FIGHTING * Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy visited soldiers on the southern front line during a trip to the Mykolaiv region, he said, without specifying when the visit took place. "We will definitely hold out! We will definitely win!" he said. * Ukraine's military said fighting continues for the embattled eastern city of Sievierodonetsk. * Local authorities reported overnight shelling of multiple locations in the eastern regions of Luhansk and Kharkiv and further west in Poltava and Dnipropetrovsk. * Rockets hit the central city of Kryvyi Rih on Saturday, causing at least two casualties, local authorities said on messaging app Telegram. * Kharkiv region governor Oleh Synehubov said Russian rockets hit a suburb of the city of Kharkiv in the early hours, hitting a municipal building and starting a fire in a block of flats. He said there were no casualties. * Russia's state RIA news agency reported that Ukrainian shelling has trapped 77 miners in a coal mine in a separatist controlled part of the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine after power to the mine was cut off. There was no immediate reaction from Kyiv. * Reuters could not independently verify battlefield reports.

DIPLOMACY * It is important Britain continues to show it is supporting Ukraine for the long haul, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said, warning of a risk of "Ukraine fatigue" as the war drags on. * Russian President Vladimir Putin accused the West on Friday of colonial arrogance and trying to crush his country with "stupid" sanctions that amounted to an economic "blitzkrieg". But he played down Ukraine's possible EU entry. * A U.S. plan to sell four large, armable drones to Ukraine has been paused for fear its sophisticated surveillance equipment might fall into enemy hands, two sources told Reuters. ECONOMY * Igor Sechin, the head of Russian oil major Rosneft said BP still remains its largest private shareholder despite having announced its departure in February after Moscow sent troops into Ukraine. BP could not immediately be reached for comment. * Sechin said the world was facing a long-term oil deficit due to underinvestment. * Russia's 2022 coal production could fall 17% to 365.1 million tonnes and exports could decrease 30% to 156 million tonnes, the Russian news agency Interfax reported, citing the energy ministry.

QUOTES * "I believe that Kyiv or any other safe Ukrainian city would be a fantastic place to have it," British prime minister Boris Johnson said, referring to the issue of which country hosts next year's Eurovision Song Contest. "It is a year away, it is going to be fine by the time the Eurovision Song Contest comes round and I hope the Ukrainians get it." (Compiled by William Mallard and Frances Kerry)