KYIV, May 27 - President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Monday made his first visit to the front line of fighting against Russian-backed rebels in the east of the country, his press office reported.

Zelenskiy "examined Ukraine's military positions at Stanytsya Luhanska and Shchastya," the office said in a statement, referring to two sites in the self-proclaimed republic of Luhansk, which broke away from Kiev in 2014 and is run by Moscow-backed rebels.

"The closest positions to the rebels were just 400 meters (1,300 feet) away," the press office said.

On the pictures released by his office, Zelenskiy can be seen in civilian garb but wearing a military helmet and khaki-colored bullet-proof vest.

He is pictured in a shelter or marching with soldiers through fields.

Experiencing at first hand the conditions in which the soldiers were living, Zelenskiy "noted the necessity of improving them," the president's office said.

The 41-year-old comedian without any political experience was elected as Ukraine's youngest post-Soviet president in April in landslide victory over the incumbent Petro Poroshenko with a campaign capitalizing on widespread discontent with the political establishment.

Zelenskiy told AFP on Thursday that his first few days since assuming office have been "a bit of a shock", pointing to the challenges at hand.

He also said that he wanted to move out of the current presidential offices located in a hulking Soviet-era building in central Kiev.

"I do not like the atmosphere, the building," said Zelenskiy, a 41-year-old comedian with no previous political experience.

"So we'll think what to do about it," he added, noting that such a move would present a lot of difficulties.

During his campaign, Zelenskiy’s detractors questioned his ability to run a country that has been at war with Russia for five years and in which 13,000 people have been killed.

While he is prepared to negotiate with the Kremlin, Zelenskiy wants to regain the territories currently under rebel control.

Ukraine and the West accuse Russia of providing weapons to the rebels, charges which Moscow denies. (afp/ez)