Russian army concedes Ukraine advances in Kursk offensive

Ukrainian servicemen sit on a self-propelled artillery 2S7 Pion while being carried by a military truck, in the Sumy region, near the border with Russia, on August 11, 2024. [AFP]

Moscow on Sunday acknowledged Ukrainian troops had pierced deep into the Kursk border region in an offensive that a top official in Ukraine said aimed to "destabilise" Russia and "stretch" its forces.

Later Sunday, each country blamed the other for a fire at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in southern Ukraine occupied by Russian forces, though both sides -- and the UN nuclear watchdog -- said there was no sign of a nuclear leak.