US official says Russia will likely control region in eastern Ukraine within weeks as the country pleads for more weapons from the West

• A senior US official told The Washington Post Russia will likely control the Luhansk region soon.
• Fighting has continued in eastern Ukraine with a strategic focus on cities like Severodonetsk.

An area of eastern Ukraine could soon be under Russian control as Ukrainian officials continue to plead with the West to send more weapons.

An unnamed senior US official told The Washington Post the Luhansk Oblast would likely be under Russian control in a matter of weeks. The official said two cities, Severodonetsk and Lysychansk, were particularly vulnerable and could fall to Russian forces in the next week.

After failing to take the capital city of Kyiv, Russia refocused its military efforts in the eastern Donbas region, where it has made some notable advances. The Donbas shares a border with Russia and includes Luhansk and Donetsk, two separatist regions where Ukraine has been fighting Kremlin-backed rebels since 2014.

As fighting continues in the east, the strategic city of Severodonetsk has been a focus of Russia's offensive and is largely under Russian control, despite Ukrainian officials saying earlier this month their forces had recaptured some of the city.

Serhiy Haidai, the governor of the Luhansk region, predicted on Saturday Russia "will throw all their reserves in order to capture" Severodonetsk within a couple of days, The Post reported.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials have said they need more weapons to counter Russia's offensive. Vadym Skibitsky, the deputy head of Ukraine's military intelligence, said Russia's artillery significantly surpasses that of Ukraine.

"Ukraine has one artillery piece to 10 to 15 Russian artillery pieces. Our western partners have given us about 10% of what they have," Skibitsky told The Guardian. He also said Ukraine's success at holding off Russian forces depends on whether or not it receives more weapons from Western countries.

The UK said last week it would send "cutting edge" guided rocket systems to Ukraine to help defend against long-range artillery used by Russia.

President Joe Biden said two weeks ago the US would also be sending more advanced rocket systems and munitions to Ukraine but said they were not intended to be used beyond the country's borders.