It comes as Ukraine's president says only the US can provide security guarantees leading to an end to the war.

Russian forces continue to make costly but consistent gains in the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine. They are steadily grinding down a pocket of resistance around the town of Kurakhove and are also fighting to envelop the larger nearby city of Pokrovsk, Ukrainian soldiers and officials said.

As Ukrainian forces mount a new offensive in Russia’s Kursk region, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday said that success in this region would improve Kyiv’s bargaining position in any future ceasefire negotiations.

Ukraine has launched a counterattack in the southern Russian border region of Kursk, warning that Russia is “getting what it deserves.”

Putin, unable to dislodge Ukrainian forces from Russian territory, loses face in the lead-up to Trump's inauguration.

The Ukrainian Defense Forces have achieved new successes in Russia’s Kursk region. These advances have been confirmed by geolocated footage, reports the Institute for the Study of War (ISW). Ukrainian forces advance in Kursk region as Russia claims its own progress.