Ukraine and Russia: What you need to know right now

* Russia is sending a large number of reserve troops to Sievierodonetsk from other battle zones to try to gain full control of the eastern city, the governor of Ukraine's Luhansk region, Serhiy Gaidai, said.

With a blessing for its European Union ambitions and a pledge of unwavering support from Britain, Ukraine vowed to prevail against Moscow as its troops battled the Russian assault near a pivotal eastern city and communities were pounded by more heavy shelling. FIGHTING * Ukrainian President Volodymyr has paid another visit to troops on the front lines of the war, praising soldiers holding forward positions as brave and hard-working. * Russia is sending a large number of reserve troops to Sievierodonetsk from other battle zones to try to gain full control of the eastern city, the governor of Ukraine's Luhansk region, Serhiy Gaidai, said. He said Russian forces already controlled most but not all of Sievierodonetsk. * Ukrainian authorities reported overnight shelling of multiple locations in the eastern regions of Luhansk and Kharkiv and further west in Poltava and Dnipropetrovsk. * Several Russian missiles hit a gasworks in the Izium district in eastern Ukraine, Kharkiv region governor Oleh Synehubov said. * Reuters could not independently verify battlefield reports.

PRISONERS, DIPLOMACY * Ukraine's defence intelligence directorate said five Ukrainian civilians had been returned in a five-for-five prisoner swap with Russia. It did not say whether the exchanged Russians were combatants. * 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. * 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," Britain's prime minister Johnson said, referring to the issue of which country hosts next year's Eurovision Song Contest. (Compiled by Frances Kerry)