Sudzha

Russia claimed Saturday that a group of its forces captured the settlement of Kirove in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region.

In a statement, the country's Defense Ministry said its Tsentr (Center) forces had captured Kirove, while other army groups had advanced along the frontline.

Russian and Ukrainian forces engaged in another night of reciprocal shelling. Ukrainian drones reportedly ignited several oil tanks in Russia's Rostov region, although it remains unclear if the "Glubokinskaya" oil depot was among the targets.

A Ukrainian soldier walks past at a city centre in Sudzha, Kursk region, Russia, Friday, Aug. 16, 2024. This image was approved by the Ukrainian Defense Ministry before publication.(AP photo)

The Kremlin on Monday ruled out entering peace talks with Ukraine over Kiev's surprise offensive into Russian territory, which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said was meeting its goals.

Ukraine’s advance into Russia may be entering a new phase after Volodymyr Zelensky announced that Ukrainian forces now control the city of Sudzha, the largest city in the Kursk region, located 10 kilometers within Russian territory.

Suddenly, this becomes significant because Sudzha is a critical transit point for natural gas flowing from Western Siberia to Europe via Ukraine.

Ukrainian serviceman ride atop a trophy tank after returning from Russia near the Russian-Ukrainian border in Sumy region, Ukraine, Thursday, Aug. 15, 2024.

Ukraine has claimed fresh advances in its offensive into Russia, saying on Thursday it seized over 1,100 square kilometers in the biggest attack by a foreign army on Russian soil since World War II.

It's one of the more improbable aspects of Russia's invasion of Ukraine: Even after 2 1/2 years of war and repeated rounds of sanctions, Russian natural gas keeps flowing through Ukraine's pipeline network to customers in Europe.

The Ukrainian military claims to have shot down a Russian fighter jet in Kursk, Russia, according to Ukrainian media reports. Kyiv also claims that since the start of operations on Russian soil, it has captured 100 prisoners of war.

Ukraine launched drone attacks on two Russian regions, targeting defense lines as its infantry pushed to seize more territory in what is considered the largest offensive against Russia since the war began.

Recent evidence indicates that the distributor of Russian gas to Europe located in Sudzha in Kursk Oblast is now under Ukrainian control. Ukrainian forces released a video confirming that the Gazprom strategic site is managed by the 99th mechanized battalion of the 61st independent steppe brigade.

The Ukrainian armed forces launched a significant military operation in the southwestern part of Russia's Kursk region on August 6, marking the largest such offensive by Ukraine on internationally recognized Russian territory.