KYIV: Ukraine on Tuesday said its troops were under pressure in the near-destroyed frontline city of Bakhmut, where Russian forces were launching heavy assaults after months of fighting, reports AFP. 

AFP aerial footage shows almost all of Bakhmut's buildings in ruins and smoke rising over the city once known for its sparkling wine production and salt mines.

Meanwhile, Ukraine's head of military intelligence has brushed aside claims that China is considering furnishing arms to Russia, telling US media that he saw no "signs that such things are even being discussed".

On the other hand, NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said Ukraine will become a member of the alliance in the "long-term", but stressed that the immediate issue is it remaining an independent nation in the face of Russia's invasion.