Ukraine has denied Russian claims that they have captured a key town in the eastern Donetsk region, but admitted that the situation looks desperate. Russia claimed control of the eastern town of Kurakhove on Monday, after months of heavy fighting. The town has been decimated by continuous Russian shelling.

Once home to 18,000 people, this bombed-out town has been turned into rubble over the past few months. The question now is: will it open the road to Pokrovsk, a major logistics hub for Ukraine in the eastern front?

"The situation in Kurakhove is really quite difficult right now, because a significant part of the city has been destroyed," Khortytsia group of forces spokesperson Viktor Trehubov said on national television Jan.