Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks in Kyiv. File photo

Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden will visit Poland over Feb. 20-22 to mark the first anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24. Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said he would discuss with Biden possibly increasing US troop presence in Poland and making it more permanent.

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Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni will travel to Kyiv on Monday to meet Zelensky, a political source in Rome. Meloni, who took office in October, has said she planned to visit Kyiv before the anniversary of Russia's invasion.

Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday, commenting on fighting in the eastern Donbas region.

Moreover, Zelensky said in an interview published by the Italian daily Corriere della Sera on Sunday that the French President Emmanuel Macron was wasting his time considering any sort of dialogue with Russia. The two presidents spoke by telephone on Sunday.

Ukrainian officials have urged US Congress members to press Biden's administration to send F-16 jet fighters to Kyiv, lawmakers said.

Ukrainian troops conducting weekend exercises near the small town of Siversk said they were preparing to defend one of the possible targets of a new Russian offensive. The town, which had a pre-war population of 10,000, is 35 km (21 miles) north of Bakhmut — scene of fierce fighting in recent weeks.

Reuters