Ukrainian forces are holding their positions against Russian troops in the eastern Donbas region and making small advances in some areas, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Friday.

"On the whole, we are holding our positions," Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address. "There are also some areas of the front where we are advancing a bit."

Zelenskyy also said Ukraine, subject to waves of Russian air attacks, had strengthened its anti-aircraft capability and would further strengthen it in the new year to protect both itself and the entire European continent.