Vira Kravchuk

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy revealed that a key objective of the recent Kursk offensive is to increase Ukraine's "exchange fund" of Russian prisoners of war. An unnamed Ukrainian colonel told the Independent that the number could be as high as 2,000 POWs.

US officials report that Russia shifted several thousand troops from occupied Ukrainian territories to the Kursk Oblast, following a surprise Ukrainian incursion, but Russia primarily deploys untrained conscripts there rather than moving its more experienced units from Ukraine.

For a year, Natalia clung to hope her missing soldier husband would return. Now when he's confirmed dead, she grapples daily an uncertain future. “What’s next? How should I live? How do I plan life?” she asks, encapsulating the daunting task of rebuilding her life shattered by war.

China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs voiced its stance on Ukrainian advances into the Russian territories, emphasizing that it condemns "expansion of the battlefield" and "igniting fire" by any side.

The saber that secured Ukraine gold in Paris Olympics will now fund "ShaBlia" turrets, remote-controlled systems for machine guns. These turrets can protect machine gunners by allowing remote operation up to 100 meters (328 feet) away.

Western media report that U.S. officials worry that Ukraine’s Kursk incursion might provoke Vladimir Putin to launch extensive missile strikes on Ukrainian cities and infrastructure in response, as happened on 11 August, when the missile debris killed a man and his 4-year-old son.

The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) claims to have arrested a senior energy official who allegedly demanded bribes for transferring critical mining equipment from war-torn Donetsk to western Ukraine.

Despite significant investments in border fortifications, Russia's defenses proved inadequate during a recent Ukrainian Kursk incursion. ISW analysts predict this development may prompt Russian military leaders to allocate more resources for border protection and impact its large-scale offensive operations.

The Governor of Russia's Belgorod Oblast ordered civilian evacuations from the Krasnoyaruzhsky district bordering Ukraine, located close to Sudzha in Russia's Kursk Oblast, where Ukrainian forces reportedly entered.

A fire was seen from the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant on 11 August, with Ukraine blaming Russian forces for starting a fire and Russia, in contrast, accusing Ukraine of deliberately targeting the facility and damaging a cooling tower.

White House National Security Advisor John Kirby also reassured reporters that there were no changes to US policies regarding the use of American-supplied weapons for strikes inside Russia, even as Ukraine launches an offensive into Kursk oblast.

The Kherson Oblast governor reported a doubling of civilian casualties in the past month, including children, leading to expansion of mandatory evacuation zones in the region.

Belarus, a key Russian ally, summoned Ukraine's top diplomat in Minsk and threatened "retaliatory steps" if alleged drone “border provocations” from Ukraine recur.

A spokesperson for Ukraine’s Naval Forces said that the platform housed Russian military personnel and equipment for GPS spoofing, potentially disrupting navigation of civilian ships in the grain export corridor.