INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Russian troops were on Monday holding the strategic Ukrainian city of Lysychansk after Kyiv's forces retreated, in a major boost for
Russia's campaign to seize the entire Donbas region of eastern Ukraine.With the war now well into its fifth month after Russia's invasion of
24, governments and organizations gathered for a conference in Switzerland to launch a plan to rebuild the country even as the conflict
shows no sign of abating.The loss of Lysychansk over the weekend prompted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to step up calls for an
increased supply of weapons from the West so Kyiv can keep up the resistance and regain lost territories.After giving up on its initial war
aim of capturing Kyiv following tough Ukrainian resistance, Russia has focused its efforts on securing control of the Donetsk and Luhansk
areas which make up the Donbas region.Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu told President Vladimir Putin at the weekend that Moscow's
the defense of the city (Lysychansk) would lead to fatal consequences" in the face of Russia's superiority in numbers and equipment, the
withdraw."'Most modern weapons'Luhansk region Governor Sergiy Gayday said on Telegram that there was still fighting in the town of
Bilogorivka outside Lysychansk."We keep defending a small part of the Luhansk region so that our army could build protective redoubts," he
added.In an address late Sunday, Zelensky vowed Kyiv would fight on and ensure the military had "the most modern weapons.""Ukraine will
reach the level when the fire superiority of the occupiers will be leveled."In Sloviansk, about 75 kilometers (45 miles) west of Lysychansk,
there were few people on the streets on Monday, the day after Russian strikes that left at least six dead, among them a nine-year-old girl,
come, as sounds of shelling were heard again.'Win back the land'The city of Siversk, 30 kilometers west of Lysychansk, also saw overnight
shelling, residents and an official told AFP.But Zelensky's address Sunday evening was defiant, pointing to Ukrainian troops progressing in
the Kharkiv and Kherson regions, and vowed "there will be a day when we will say the same about Donbas.""We will rebuild the walls, we will
dozens of countries and international organizations were meeting in the Swiss city of Lugano, where they aim to hash out a roadmap for
lay out the principles and priorities for a rebuilding process aimed to begin even as the war rages.'Democracy over autocracy'Ukraine will
also face demands for broad reforms, especially in cracking down on corruption after Brussels recently granted Kyiv candidate status in its
push to join the 27-member European Union.Zelensky will address the conference by video, but the event is also being attended by Ukrainian
humanitarian assistance as well as access to British financial and economic expertise, the foreign office said.She will tell delegates that
starting to repair houses, many are putting in new windows
It would be terrible if it started again and we had to leave everything again."
