Residents of the border town of Vovchans'k, Kharkiv oblast, are accustomed to strikes. However, on May 10, they were forced to flee their homes.

Tamaz Gambashvili, Mayor of Vovchans'k, a small city 70 kilometers to the northeast of Kharkiv city, told ERR: "This kind of bombardment was unexpected."

"Even residents accustomed to daily shelling were shocked by an assault like this, on residential buildings and infrastructure. The fire was so intense that people couldn't leave the town for several hours," he went on.

In mid-May, Ukrainian forces managed to halt the enemy's advance.

Kharkiv oblast head Roman Synyhubov said the enemy "exhausted their resources, but brought in reserves, and continued the offensive. So we will see what happens next. Our task on this front is to neutralize as much enemy equipment and personnel as is possible."

Defensive structures in the Kharkiv region, such as trenches, could, if not halt outright, at least hinder Russian forces' advance.

Some of these could have been built by the military, others by the Kharkiv regional administration.

Synyhubov said: "The border zone, or the first line of defense, is the responsibility of the military. They build their own defensive structures and shelters there. Our responsibility begins with the third line of defense, which is about 10 kilometers from the front."

On this, Kharkiv oblast deputy head Roman Semenukha said: "I can confirm that work is ongoing."

"Naturally, there are areas where things are very dangerous because they are constantly being hit by aerial projectiles. It's clear that it is difficult to work there. How much we are behind schedule in those places, of course, needs to be asked directly from those responsible," Semenukha went on.

But just how long can Ukrainian forces hold off the Russian offensive?

Synyhubov said: "We'll wait and see. We cannot claim that all the forces stationed beyond the border will assault us. It seems that June will be a difficult and intense month for us, however."

For Vovchans'k's mayor, the month just finished was already difficult and intense as well, as he found out himself two weeks ago, when he was injured while helping to evacuate people from the town.

"There were about 50 to 60 people. Volunteers, police officers, journalists, and ordinary residents hoping to escape. Everyone was waiting for transport. Then the enemy struck, but fortunately, most were not injured, only the medics and myself," Gambashvili said.

At least five people were killed in a Russian strike on an apartment block in Kharkiv overnight Thursday to Friday, while the U.S. has given Kyiv the go-ahead to use its weapons to strike inside Russia, for defensive purposes.

ERR's Anton Aleksejev and Kristjan Svirgsden have been delivering regular reports from the front line in Ukraine since the full-scale Russian invasion started, well over two years ago.

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