Ukrainian forces made a surprise incursion into Kursk in August 2024, before being pushed out by Russian troops nine months later.

Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky says Russia has suffered more than 63,000 casualties in Kursk and that Ukrainian operations there continue, hours after Vladimir Putin made a surprise visit to the region.

The Russian leader traveled to the region in the west of the country where a surprise incursion last year embarrassed Moscow.

Vladimir Putin has visited Kursk for the first time since claiming to have completely retaken the Russian region from Ukrainian forces, state media reported on Wednesday, as the Russian president attempts to repel international pressure to agree to a 30-day ceasefire on the other side of the border.

The European Union and Britain on Tuesday rolled out a sweeping set of sanctions targeting what they call Russia's "shadow fleet", a covert network of tankers used to secretly move Russian oil across the globe.

A new report has found that Russia's relentless campaign to attack Ukraine has now targeted the country's grain supplies

Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump discussed what the U.S. leader called "impressive" prospects for ties between their two countries in a phone call on Monday, the Kremlin said, adding that Russia and the United States are working on a new prisoner swap.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio refused to provide a straight answer when asked if Russian President Vladimir Putin was a war criminal while testifying before the Senate.