At the height of the campaign, Ukrainian forces controlled some 500 square miles of Russian territory. Now they hold just a small sliver of land along the border.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Ukrainian troops have not been encircled by Russian forces in Kursk region, accusing Russian leader Vladimir Putin of “lying” about the situation on the ground.

A rapid Russian advance in recent days left remaining Ukrainian forces increasingly isolated under withering assaults, and they had pulled out from all but a sliver of Kursk provi