Key points
- Second Russian region evacuated due to 'Ukrainian activity'
- Ukraine controls 1,000 sq km of Russian territory
- Belgorod also under missile alert - with residents told to go to basem*nts
- Putin appears 'hesitant and rattled' in public comments over Ukrainian attacks
- Kursk invasion has given Ukraine 'battlefield initiative'
- Zelenskyy on Kursk invasion: Russian strikes deserved 'fair response'
- Michael Clarke analysis:Possible aims of the Kursk invasion
- Cooling tower at Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant may have to be replaced - report
That's all for our coverage today
We'll be back tomorrow morning with more updates on the Ukraine war.
Before we go, here's a reminder of what has happened today:
- Some 11,000 people were evacuated from the Krasnoyaruzhsky district in Russia's Belgorod region due to activity by Ukrainian forces;
- Kyiv's army chief Oleksandr Syrskyi claimed Ukraine controlled around 1,000 square kilometres of Russia's Kursk region;
- The US-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said Ukraine's invasion of the Kursk region had allowed Kyiv to seize the battlefield initiative for the first time since the end of last year;
- A fire broke out at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant;
- China called for de-escalation after Ukrainian troops launched a surprise assault inside Russia;
- Vladimir Putin said the Russian military must "dislodge" Ukrainian troops from border regions, according to reports;
- The governor of Russia's Kursk region claimed Ukrainian forces used shells containing chemical weapons during their invasion.
Fire at Odesa grain warehouse extinguished
Firefighters in Ukraine's southern region of Odesa extinguished a blaze that threatened a grain warehouse, the state emergency service reported earlier today.
No fatalities or injuries were reported as a result of the fire, which spanned around 2,000 metres and charred a portion of the facility in the village of Vizyrka.
Authorities did not specify the cause.
"Thanks to the prompt actions of the firefighters, it was possible to prevent the fire from spreading to nearby grain warehouses," the state emergency service said in a statement.
It did not name the damaged facility near the Black Sea port of Pivdennyi, one of Ukraine's largest.
Russian forces 'reduce number of guided bomb attacks in Kharkiv region'
Russian forces have reduced the number of guided bomb attacks on border settlements in Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region, the local governor has said.
The Kremlin has long been pummelling Ukrainian villages lying on the border with artillery and destructive guided bombs.
It stepped up attacks on the Kharkiv region in May, when Moscow's troops opened a new front in the region's north.
But today, the governor Oleh Syniehubov told national TV: "We have been recording a sharp decrease in guided bomb strikes in recent days."
He said the border area had seen the number of bombs go down from up to 60 guided bomb strikes per day to "no more than 10".
He added though that Russia continued attacking civilian infrastructure.
Moscow denies targeting civilians or civilian infrastructure.
What do we know about the invasion into the Kursk region?
On 6 August, Ukraine invaded Russia's Kursk region and Russian forces are still scrambling to respond to the surprise attack.
The attack has caused more than 100,000 civilians to flee and Ukraine's top military commander Oleksandr Syrskyi says his forces now control 1,000 square kilometres of the region.
The question over whether Kyiv's forces aim to hold territory or are staging hit-and-run raids remain unclear but it is the first time the Ukrainian army has spearheaded an attack of this nature rather than pro-Ukraine Russian fighters.
Here, Sky News takes a look at how things unfolded...
A recap of what's been happening today
As Kyiv's forces enter parts of Russia, here is a recap of what has happened today:
- Some 11,000 people were evacuated from the Krasnoyaruzhsky district in Russia's Belgorod region due to activity by Ukrainian forces, a Russian official said;
- Ukraine's top military commander, Oleksandr Syrskyi, said his forces now controlled 1,000 square kilometres of Russia's neighbouring Kursk region, the first time a Ukrainian military official has publicly commented on the gains;
- Vladimir Putin said the Ukrainian army's invasion into the Kursk region, which has caused more than 100,000 civilians to flee, was an attempt by Kyiv to stop Moscow's offensive in eastern Ukraine's Donbas region and gain leverage in possible future peace talks;
- Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed for the first time that Ukrainian military forces are operating inside the Kursk region;
- The Ukrainian leader also said Russia had to be "forced to make peace".
Watch: Ukrainian army chief says situation 'under control'
Today, Ukraine's top military commander said his forces now control 1,000 square kilometres of Russia's neighbouring Kursk region, the first time a Ukrainian military official has publicly commented on the gains of the attack.
General Oleksandr Syrskyi made the statement in a video posted to Volodymyr Zelenskyy's Telegram channel.
In the video, he briefed the president on the frontline situation.
"The troops are fulfilling their tasks. Fighting continues actually along the entire front line. The situation is under our control," he said.
Russian forces are still scrambling to respond to the surprise Ukrainian attack after almost a week of fierce fighting.
You can watch him speak to Ukrainian officials here...
Ukraine urges France to lift ban on Western weapons being used to hit targets in Russia
Ukraine has urged France to lift its ban on weapons it provides being used to hit military targets inside Russia.
Ukraine's defence minister Rustem Umerov wrote on X that he had held a "productive call" with France's minister of the armed forces Sebastien Lecornu on the recent frontline status.
"I urged on the necessity to lift bans on hitting military targets on enemy's territory," he said.
Western countries have restricted the use of their weapons to military targets located inside Ukraine, amid concerns that attacking targets in Russia could escalate the conflict.
Russia says it is carrying out 'counterterrorism operation'
Russia has said it is carrying out a "counterterrorism operation" in its border regions with Ukraine.
In a clip shared by columnist for The Daily Beast, Julia Davis, a news presenter of Russia's state news channel says the Kremlin is ensuring the safety of its citizens from the "threat of sabotage and terrorist acts".
"Counterterrorism operations have been announced in three Russian regions: Belgorod, Bryansk and Kursk," she says.
"The national antiterrorism committee underscored that Kyiv made an unprecedented attempt to destabilise the situation in a number of border regions.
"The government is implementing special measures to ensure the safety of its citizens from the threat of sabotage and terrorist acts."
Earlier, Vladimir Putin said that Ukraine's biggest attack on Russian territory since the start of the war was aimed at improving Kyiv's negotiating position ahead of possible peace talks and at slowing the advance of Russian forces.
Putin 'must be forced to make peace', Zelenskyy says
Russia has to be "forced to make peace", Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said.
Speaking in his nightly address, the Ukrainian leader said that Kyiv's major cross-border assault into the western region of Kursk was a matter of security for Ukraine and that Kyiv had captured areas from where Russia had launched strikes.
"Russia must be forced to make peace if Putin wants to fight so badly," he said.
He said Ukraine's northeastern Sumy region, which lies across the border from Kursk region, had been attacked almost 2,100 times by Russian cross-border strikes since 1 June.
"Russia brought war to others, now it's coming home. Ukraine has always wanted only peace, and we will certainly ensure peace," he added.
Watch: Ukrainian soldiers take down Russian flags in Kursk region
Ukrainian troops have been taking down Russian flags in villages across the Kursk region.
The clips, which have been circulating on social media, come as Ukraine's top commander said Kyiv controlled around 1,000 square kilometres of the region.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy said earlier a meeting of top-level officials had ordered the preparation of a "humanitarian plan" for the area.
