Zelenskyy hopeful NATO leaders agree to more assistance for Ukraine

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has expressed hope that NATO leaders will agree to boost assistance to his country as Russian forces are intensifying their offensive in eastern Ukraine.

The NATO summit will open in Washington on Tuesday.

Zelenskyy said in a social media post on Saturday: "To protect all our cities and villages, and to truly overcome Russian terror, we need more concrete decisions. Next week, we will work with our partners for such decisions."

Meanwhile, Russia's Defense Ministry said in a statement on Sunday that its forces have taken control of a village in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk. It also said the forces improved their tactical positions as a result of active operations.

Ukrainian forces announced they had shot down Russia's Su-25 aircraft on the Pokrovsk front in the Donetsk region.

Attention is focused on how much assistance NATO leaders will be able to come up with while Zelenskyy has been stressing the need for support in obtaining long-range missiles and enhancing air defense systems.