Zelenskiy visits city long in Russia's sights

STORY: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy made an unannounced visit to the frontline city of Bakhmut on Tuesday (December 20)...

Handing out medals to soldiers and thanking them for their “strength and motivation”.

The key eastern city, one that Russia has long tried and failed to capture, has seen some of the fiercest fighting in recent weeks.

While Zelenskiy met with his troops on the ground, highlighting Russia's unsuccessful efforts there, his counterpart President Vladimir Putin was also handing out awards in a televised Kremlin ceremony to the newly installed leaders of annexed eastern Ukrainian territories.

Putin's proclaimed annexations in September, condemned as illegal by Ukraine and its Western allies, were an attempt to turn the tide after a series of battlefield defeats.

But fanfare and pageantry aside, Putin acknowledged on Tuesday (December 20) that the situation in Russian-held parts of Ukraine was “extremely difficult”.

Addressing Russia's security services, Putin told operatives they needed to significantly improve their work, ordering the FSB to ensure the "safety" of those living there.

The comments were one of his clearest public admissions yet that the invasion he launched almost 10 months ago is not going to plan.

A senior U.S. state department official said on Tuesday that there were “conflicting” views within Russia on the next steps in Ukraine...

With some seeking to launch a new counteroffensive, while others are questioning the country’s ability to carry them out.

Putin's address comes the day after he made a visit to ally Belarus, that fueled fears, dismissed by the Kremlin, that the country could help Russia open a new invasion front against Ukraine.