Russia-Ukraine war updates: Ukraine seizes 28 villages in Russia’s Kursk

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You can read our latest story from Ukraine on the public mood here.

Our explainer on the impact of Ukraine’s incursion into Russia on the course of the war is here.

Putin says Kyiv “with the help of its Western masters – it is doing their bidding – and the West is waging war against us using Ukrainians”.

At a meeting in which he discussed Ukraine’s incursion into Russia, Putin said Kyiv’s aim to slow down the pace of Russian forces was “fruitless” and Russian advances had, in fact, increased.

Oleksandr Syrskii, the head of the Ukrainian military, says in a video published by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on a social media account that the “offensive operations in the Kursk region” continue.

“As of now, about 1,000sq km [386sq miles] of the territory of the Russian Federation is under our control,” Syrskii said.

Zelenskyy said he ordered the preparation of a “humanitarian plan” for the area.

US State Department spokesman Vedant Patel tells reporters that Washington is prepared to deliver “a swift and severe response if Iran were to move forward with the transfer of ballistic missiles”.

He said such a move would represent “a dramatic escalation in Iran’s support for Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine”.

The Reuters news agency quoted two European intelligence sources in a report on Friday that said dozens of Russian military personnel are being trained in Iran to use the Fath-360 close-range ballistic missile system.

They added that they expected the imminent delivery of hundreds of the satellite-guided weapons to Russia for its war in Ukraine.

Russia’s Defence Ministry says additional forces and resources have arrived in the Kursk region, where the Ukrainian forces are attacking for a seventh day.

It did not elaborate on the number of troops or the volume of supplies.

“Heavy tracked vehicles are being loaded onto automobile trailers for prompt delivery to the areas where Ukrainian Armed Forces formations are being blocked and to ensure the safety of the road surface,” the military reported.

Here are some of the main developments over the past day:

• New evacuation orders have been issued in Russia’s Belgorod and Kursk regions amid Ukraine’s cross-border incursion.
• The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) says Russia is planning to falsely accuse Kyiv’s military of war crimes.
• Kursk Governor Alexei Smirnov says the civilian death toll from Ukraine’s incursion into the region has reached 12.
• Russian President Vladimir Putin says Ukraine is trying to undermine Russian stability with its incursion into the south of the country but it will not succeed.
• Russia says it has repelled seven Ukrainian attacks in Kursk launched by Ukraine’s 80th and 82nd airborne assault brigades within 24 hours.
• A Ukrainian deputy energy minister accused of taking a bribe worth half a million dollars has been arrested along with three alleged accomplices, according to the SBU.

Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov says he has spoken with his French counterpart, Sebastien Lecornu, about a ban on Western weapons being used to attack Russia.

Umerov said on X that he urged Lecornu to lift the ban on “hitting military targets” in the “enemy’s territory”.

In May, French President Emmanuel Macron said Ukraine could “neutralise” targets in Russia’s territory but only locations “from which the missiles are fired” and “not other civilian or military targets”.

🇺🇦 🇫🇷 Had a productive call with Sébastien Lecornu, Minister of the Armed Forces of France.

We’ve discussed recent frontline status.
I urged on the necessity to lift bans on hitting military targets on enemy’s territory.

— Rustem Umerov (@rustem_umerov) August 12, 2024

Ukraine’s State Security Service (SBU) says that Russia is trying to falsely accuse Kyiv’s military of war crimes amid the cross-border incursion in Russia’s west Kursk region.

SBU said on Telegram that it had gathered information showing Russia may stage crimes, which it would, in turn, blame on Ukraine.

Moscow and Kyiv regularly accuse each other of planning so-called “false flag” operations.

Switzerland’s Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis says he has signed a joint declaration with his Italian counterpart Antonio Tajani, expressing “deep concern” over Russian aggression in Ukraine, but added that Moscow should be present at the next peace summit.

Switzerland hosted dozens of world leaders at a mid-June summit aimed at crafting a pathway towards peace in Ukraine, although Russia was not invited.

“We support holding a second peace summit that includes all parties, including Russia,” Cassis said on X.

#Ukraine | Together with 🇮🇹 FM @Antonio_Tajani, we signed a joint declaration in Locarno expressing our deep concern over Russia's aggression in 🇺🇦 (📃 https://t.co/QeTHOK9bQR)

We are calling for the assurance of nuclear safety, the release of prisoners of war, & the… pic.twitter.com/j6d1XnDbPz

— Ignazio Cassis (@ignaziocassis) August 12, 2024

Oleh Syniehubov, the governor of Ukraine’s Kharkiv region, has told state television that the border area used to see from 30 to 60 guided bomb strikes per day.

In recent days, there were “no more than 10”, he said.

Russia has long been striking Ukrainian villages lying on the border with artillery and extremely destructive guided bombs.

It stepped up its attacks on the Kharkiv region in May, when Moscow’s troops opened a new front in the region’s north.

Syniehubov said that Russia continued attacking civilian infrastructure, and for that reason, regional authorities planned to tighten curfew rules for about 100 settlements near the border and the front line.

Volodymyr Artyukh, the head of Ukraine’s Sumy regional military administration, has announced a mandatory evacuation from the Seredino-Bud community in the Shostky district and the Velikopysariv community in the Okhtyrka district, according to the Interfax news agency.

Artyukh says the order that “primarily concerns children” is in addition to the evacuation “for a five-kilometre zone in 115 settlements” that was announced a year ago.

The Sumy region sits across the border from Russia’s Kursk, where Ukrainian forces launched a surprise offensive six days ago.

Denise Brown, the UN coordinator in Ukraine, says, on average, one school, hospital or clinic is damaged or destroyed every day in Ukraine as a result of Russian attacks, according to the news agency Interfax.

“Hospitals are under special protection of international humanitarian law because that’s where people turn to for services. This is not part of the war,” said Brown, who is completing her two-year mission in Ukraine.

She emphasized that these attacks are a gross violation of international humanitarian law.

Brown also said a UN office will soon be opened in Kherson in southern Ukraine.

In March 2022, during the first weeks of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russian forces took control of Kherson. Later that year, Ukraine took the city back and pushed Russian forces onto the Dnipro River’s left bank.

A recent opinion poll suggests that 44 percent of Ukrainians are ready for peace talks – the highest such figure since the full-scale Russian invasion began in February 2022.

Only 23 percent of Ukrainians wanted such talks in May 2023, according to a similar poll, when Ukraine was jubilant about Russia’s retreat from several key areas in late 2022 and overwhelmingly believed in the success of an upcoming counteroffensive.

Read more here.

Alexei Smirnov says the total civilian death toll from Ukraine’s incursion into Russia’s Kursk region has reached 12.

At least 121 others were injured during the six days of violence, including 10 children, he said during an online meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“As of today, 121,000 people have left and been evacuated” while 59,000 more need to leave, Smirnov added.

Russian President Vladimir Putin says that Ukraine is trying to undermine Russian stability with its incursion into the south of the country, but it will not succeed.

“The losses of the Ukrainian armed forces are increasing dramatically for them, including among the most combat-ready units, units that the enemy is transferring to our border,” Putin told a televised meeting with top security officials and regional governors.

“The enemy will certainly receive a worthy response, and all the goals facing us will, without a doubt, be achieved.”

Smirnov has updated Putin about the situation in his region during an online meeting broadcast on state television.

Kyiv’s forces have advanced 12km (7.4 miles) into Russian territory during an incursion that began on Tuesday, he said.