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Intense fighting for control of the eastern Ukrainian city of Severodonetsk continues, with no major changes reported over the past day, according to Ukrainian officials.

“The situation in Severodonetsk is very tense,” Roman Vlasenko, head of the Severodonetsk district military administration, told Ukrainian state television.

“The fight goes on, the street fight goes on. The dynamic is very big. The Russians use artillery heavily. They have a certain advantage in terms of artillery, in terms of personnel. But they have no real success. You can’t beat the guys from Severodonetsk.”

Vlasenko said the Ukrainian military in Severodonetsk was “confident” in their defense.

On Wednesday, the head of the Luhansk regional military administration, Serhiy Hayday, said most of the city is now controlled by Russian forces, although Ukrainians have retained control of Severodonetsk’s industrial zone.

Hayday told Ukrainian television on Friday that those fighting for Severodonetsk face difficulties, “but they clearly understand that they are not threatened by encirclement.

“They are clearly taking their positions and understanding how things are going,” he said.

In a speech Thursday evening, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said: “Severodonetsk, Lysyhansk and other cities in the Donbass, which the occupiers now see as main targets, are sticking to them.”