MORE than 20 European heads of state and other Western officials gathered in Paris today in support of Ukraine as the country’s war with Russia enters its third year.

French President Emmanuel Macron, hosting the conference, said he wanted to discuss strengthening aid and ways to “give credibility to the fact that Russia cannot win in Ukraine.”

“We are at a critical moment,” Mr Macron said. “With Ukraine having limited resources, we must reinforce the munitions, the military resources, what we send.”

Ukrainian officials have warned they are running out of ammunition, and front-line troops are having to ration shells as further tranches of US aid are held up by disputes in Congress.

A top French official said the conference was not aimed at making new commitments for weapon deliveries and financial aid, but rather at better co-ordinating support for Kiev and ensuring that aid promises were kept.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was expected to attend via videolink as the Morning Star went to print.

On the front lines, Ukrainian troops have pulled out of a village in the east of the country, army spokesman Dmytro Lykhovii said, because they were outnumbered and outgunned by Russian forces.

Russia’s Ministry of Defence said its troops had “liberated” Lastochkyne.

Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustan Umerov complained on Sunday that half of the military support promised to Ukraine by the West was failing to arrive on time.

The delays make it hard to undertake proper military planning and ultimately cost soldiers’ lives, he said.

Meanwhile, Indian sources in Russia have said that dozens of Indian men, aged between 22 and 31, have been duped by agents into fighting for Moscow’s forces, with one killed in a missile strike.

The men were hired as “helpers in the military establishment in Russia” and allegedly sent to the battlefield on the pretext of “training,” according to their families.

The men all come from poor backgrounds, with their parents and siblings being either motorised rickshaw drivers, tea sellers or handcart vendors.

Victims and families allege that agents demanded 300,000 rupees (£2,857), promising a Russian passport after a few months of army service.

One father told the BBC: “My 28-year-old son worked in a packaging company in Dubai.

“He, along with three friends, saw an agent’s video offering jobs in Russia with a promised salary of 90,000 to 100,000 rupees, compared to their current earnings of 35,000 to 40,000 rupees.

“They paid the agent 300,000 rupees through loans. Please help bring my son back.”