Kyiv replaces commander overseeing north-eastern Kharkiv frontline in effort to turn the tide as fighting continues

• Ukraine war – live updates

Russian forces continued their advance on Ukraine’s northern Kharkiv region on Monday, achieving “tactical success”, Kyiv said, as fears grow that Moscow will achieve its biggest breakthrough since the early days of the war.

Some of the fiercest fighting is being conducted on the outskirts of the Ukrainian town of Vovchansk, which before the war had a population of 17,000. Ukrainian and Russian reports have confirmed that Russian troops have advanced into the outskirts of the town, where gunfire has been reported in industrial areas.

Kharkiv region’s governor says Russia is attempting to stretch front line; Ukrainian commander responsible for north-eastern frontline replaced

• Putin removes Sergei Shoigu as Russia’s defence minister

Russia’s new defence minister Andrei Belousov has said that soldiers need better access to housing, hospitals and welfare benefits.

Reuters reports:

We rejected that at the time and I think the same applies to the different requests that are now being made.

As Putin’s forces press towards ruined Chasiv Yar, Ukrainians try to survive under bombardment in the shadow of the frontline

For months, Serhiy Gorbunov has been trying to persuade residents of Chasiv Yar, Russia’s current target in eastern Ukraine, to leave. “There’s intense shelling. The place is being bombarded. It’s a difficult situation,” he said. “People are living underground in basements. We tell them: ‘Please go.’ They answer with excuses. Most say they don’t want to abandon their homes. We try to help but they refuse.”

Gorbunov is the head of the city military administration in Kostiantynivka, the nearest functioning city to the frontline. That is 7 miles (11km) from his office, reached via a dusty and potholed back road that climbs up to the heights of Chasiv Yar. The Russians, who have been besieging the town for well over a year, have now reached its eastern outskirts and are trying to surround it.

Ukraine says it is pushing back against assaults and battling for control of territory

Fierce fighting has continued for a second day on the fringes ofthe Kharkiv region in north-east Ukraine. Moscow said it had captured five villages, while Kyiv said it was pushing back against the attacks and battling for control of the territory.

Russia launched the armoured incursion early on Friday, in an attack that may presage a broader push into the Kharkiv region, or aim to draw away overstretched Ukrainian forces in the east where Moscow’s offensive is focused.