But Russia has managed to accelerate its rate of advance in recent months, as it did last fall, before wet, cold conditions slowed Moscow’s progress. Peace talks have stalled, bringing focus back to where the war will ultimately be decided: the battlefield.

Russia said on Monday that its forces had taken control of more territory in Ukraine's east-central region of Dnipropetrovsk, where the Kremlin said fighting was partly aimed at creating a "buffer zone.

Russian forces have advanced into Dnipropetrovsk and Sumy regions, in fresh bid for Ukrainian land beyond what Moscow's already annexed.

Russia said Sunday it was advancing into Ukraine's eastern industrial Dnipropetrovsk region for the first time in its three-year invasion -- a significant territorial escalation amid stalled peace talks.

The conflict between Russia and Ukraine intensifies as Russian forces advance to Dnipropetrovsk, while Kyiv conducts drone attacks on Russian assets. Tensions rise over peace negotiations and prisoner swaps.

Russia has performed poorly on the battlefield in Ukraine and will likely hit the 1 million casualty mark in the summer of 2025. New CSIS data details Russia's slow rate of advance, heavy losses of equipment,

The daring Ukrainian operation had been in the works for more than a year and entailed a covert operation to smuggle a slew of drones into Russia, but the White House was not given a heads-up that