Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy marked the 400th day of Russia's full-scale invasion, saying in his evening address on March 30 that his country is preparing its next steps but did not explicitly mention an anticipated counteroffensive.
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Zelenskiy noted that 400 days have passed since the start of the invasion on February 24, 2022, and said Ukraine has come a "colossal way" through its struggle, citing the recapture of areas of the Kharkiv region and the city of Kherson, along with the ongoing defense of the eastern city of Bakhmut and the Donbas region in general.
"This is the heroism of Ukrainians, which the world will not forget," he said. "We are preparing our next steps, we are preparing our active actions, approaching victory.... We will not leave a single trace of Russia on our land, and we will not leave any enemy unpunished."
Ukrainian military commanders have said a counteroffensive is not far off, but Zelenskiy indicated earlier this week that Kyiv is still waiting on "sufficient weapons" before mounting any major attacks.
The Ukrainian military said earlier on March 30 that its forces held their ground on the eastern front, repelling dozens of attacks in and around Bakhmut, the city in the Donetsk region that has been the focal point of Russia's offensive over the past several months, and called for the West to give it modern warplanes.
The General Staff of the Ukrainian military said in its daily bulletin that Russian forces continued to concentrate their offensive on Bakhmut and several other locations in Donetsk -- Avdiyivka, Maryinka, Belohoryivka, and Lyman -- having launched a total of 60 attacks in those locations over the past 24 hours.
Later on March 30, Russian missiles hit the eastern city of Kharkiv, regional governor Oleh Sinehubov said.
"The enemy is attacking Kharkiv again. At least 6 'arrivals' have been recorded," Sinehubov said on Telegram. Preliminary information suggested that S-300 antiaircraft missiles launched from the southern Russian region of Belgorod were used in the attack, he said. Belgorod lies across the border to the north of Kharkiv.
The relentless attacks on Bakhmut and its surroundings have taken a heavy toll on Russian forces.
General Mark Milley, the chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, told American lawmakers that Moscow has failed to make any advances in Bakhmut in the last couple of weeks while Russian casualties continued to go up.
Milley told the House Armed Services Committee on March 29 that Russia has not made "any progress whatsoever" around Bakhmut over the past weeks and that the Wagner mercenary group has been "suffering an enormous amount of casualties" in the area.
He said Bakhmut has become a "slaughter-fest for the Russians."
The commander of the Ukrainian armed forces, General Valeriy Zaluzhniy, on March 30 issued a video depicting the actions of Ukraine's air force in the war. In the video, the commander of Ukraine's tactical aviation brigade, Oleksiy Manyushkyn, appeals to Kyiv's allies to supply it with U.S.-made F-16 fighter jets.
Manyushkin says Ukrainian pilots are motivated and ready to master any Western equipment in the shortest possible time to bring Ukraine closer to victory.
So far, only NATO members Poland and Slovakia have offered Ukraine fighter jets, but they only agreed to deliver old Russian-made MiG-29 aircraft, which Ukrainian pilots know how to operate.
On March 28, U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin told the House Armed Service Committee that during the current phase of the conflict, providing Ukraine with modern fighter jets will do little to help.
In PHOTOS: The Ukrainian military claims Moscow's forces are showing signs of "exhaustion" as the battle over the destroyed eastern city of Bakhmut rages on.
Fighting Amid The Rubble: Ukraine Battles On For 'Fortress Bakhmut'
"Regarding the F16 fighters, if such a decision is made, it will take approximately 18 months to provide these capabilities. However, this will not help the Ukrainians at this stage of the war," Austin told U.S. lawmakers.
"Can the Ukrainians get fighters in the future? We all believe so. Potentially, these could be either F-16s or other fourth-generation aircraft. So we will continue to work with our partners to ensure that Ukraine has exactly what it needs," he said, arguing that Kyiv now needs more air-defense systems, armored vehicles, and long-range weapons.
"And we provide them with a significant package of such opportunities," Austin said.
Last month, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz also said that arming Ukraine with warplanes "currently makes no sense," adding in an interview with German television that Berlin does not have any of the F-16 fighters that Ukraine has requested.