Ukraine's military said its forces have withdrawn from two more villages near the eastern city of Avdiyivka, which was captured earlier this month by Russian forces, marking further losses for Ukraine as its troops continue to struggle with shortages of equipment, especially ammunition.
Ukrainian troops withdrew from Stepove and Syeverne, which lie west of Avdiyivka, Ukrainian military spokesman Dmytro Lykhoviy said on February 27.
"Our forces withdrew from the small villages of Syeverne and Stepove.... Heavy battles for Syeverne went on yesterday in the evening and night," Lykhoviy said, adding that Russia had taken significant losses in the fight.
Ukrainian forces have consolidated new defensive positions west of Avdiyivka, he said.
Russia's Defense Ministry said it had captured Syeverne, and that its troops had "occupied more advantageous lines and positions" and struck Ukrainian troops and equipment near Syeverne and Stepove, and another settlement, Lastochkyne, which Kyiv announced on February 26 it had abandoned.
Oleksandr Tarnavskiy, the commander of Ukraine's southeastern sector, said on Telegram that in the Avdiyivka "sector," the line of defense has been "stabilized" in the areas of Tonenke, Orlivka, and Berdychi.
Russian forces had failed in their attempts to advance in two areas further south, including to the Ukrainian-held village of Robotyne, Tarnavskiy added.
It was not possible to verify the claims.
The U.S. State Department said on February 27 that the situation on the battlefield in Ukraine was "extremely serious" because the Ukrainian military does not have enough ammunition to repel Russian aggression.
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State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said Ukrainian troops "continue to fight bravely" with the weapons and ammunition that they have, but "they have to [conserve] it because the U.S. Congress has failed to act."
Miller again called on Congress to pass a bill that would provide $61 billion in military aid to the Ukrainian Army.
"Fundamentally, we think that the path to victory for Ukraine right now is in the United States House of Representatives," Miller said.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (Republican-Louisiana), an ally of former President Donald Trump and head of a razor-thin Republican majority in the House, has refused to allow a vote on the bill.
U.S. President Joe Biden and top Democrats met with Johnson and other senior Republican members of Congress on February 27 at the White House to press again for its passage.
A White House statement issued after a meeting said Biden "discussed how Ukraine has lost ground on the battlefield in recent weeks and is being forced to ration ammunition and supplies due to congressional inaction."
Biden again warned of the terrible cost of delaying the aid, which was approved overwhelmingly by the Senate nearly two weeks ago. Johnson said after the meeting the Senate's package "does nothing" to secure the U.S.-Mexico border, which is what Republicans have demanded in return for passing aid to Ukraine.
"The first priority of the country is our border, and making it secure," Johnson said.
The House has adjourned until February 28 and will work on reaching an agreement on government funding as agreements to continue spending at previous levels begin to expire.
The House is not expected to return to the national security package until after the first week of March.