Outnumbered Ukrainian troops are clinging to a section of Russian territory in hopes of using it as a bargaining chip in any future negotiations.

Russia says five people have been killed in a Ukrainian strike in the western Kursk region. Ukrainian officials reported earlier that Moscow had launched a fresh missile attack on Kyiv, damaging a building hosting several embassies.

Six people, including one child, were killed on Friday in a Ukrainian missile attack on the town of Rylsk in Russia's Kursk region, the acting governor, Alexander Khinshtein, said.

"Through various sources of information and intelligence, we assess that North Korean troops who have recently engaged in combat with Ukrainian forces have suffered around 1,100 casualties," the JCS said in a statement.

Ukraine attacked a town in Russia's Kursk region Friday, killing six people, including a child, a senior local official said. Ten others were hospitalized in the town of Rylsk after the attack with U.S.-supplied HIMARS rockets, Kursk acting Governor Alexander Khinshtein said.

Reclaiming Kursk is high on Moscow's agenda but comments by Valery Gerasimov failed to address the continuing presence of Ukrainian troops on Russian soil.

Russian President Vladimir Putin had suggested a “high-tech duel” with Ukraine. Read more at straitstimes.com.

The assessment of drone vulnerability differs from an on-the-ground testimony obtained by the Kyiv Independent, in which a Special Forces serviceman disclosed how North Korean troops were well-protected by Russia’s electronic warfare,

Satellite imagery indicates that North Korea increased its arms production and is boosting supplies to Russia for its war against Ukraine. Approximately 200 ammunition factories in North Korea are currently operating at full capacity.

U.S. and Ukrainian estimates suggest there are between 10,000 and 12,000 North Korean troops currently inside Russia, with their focus on the Kursk region. Ukrainian and American officials now say North Korean forces are actively engaged in fighting and ...

Russia and Ukraine on Friday accused each other of launching deadly missile strikes, with Moscow saying at least six were killed by a missile strike on its Kursk border region after a dawn attack on Ukraine's capital killed one man.