AFP 1 | Roman PILIPEY

UKRAINE
A Ukrainian military vehicle drives from the direction of the border with Russia carrying blindfolded men in Russian military uniforms, in the Sumy region, on August 13, 2024, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. On August 6, 2024, Ukraine launched a surprise offensive into the Russian border region of Kursk, capturing over two dozen towns and villages in the most significant cross-border attack on Russian territory since World War II. Ukraine’s military chief Oleksandr Syrsky told the Ukrainian President in a video posted on August 12, 2024, that his troops now control about 1,000 square kilometres of Russian territory and are continuing “offensive operations”.