A peace deal is in the "best interest" of Ukraine, Russia and the U.S, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Tuesday.

The soldiers died in battles across Kursk and several Ukrainian regions, according to an organisation involved in retrieving military casualties.

BELGRADE, Serbia — Serbia’s Russia-friendly leader made a surprise visit to Ukraine on Wednesday for a summit on strengthening European support for Kyiv’s fight against Russian aggression, but he refused to sign a joint declaration calling for tougher sanctions against Moscow.

Serbia's populist President Aleksandar Vucic travelled to the Ukrainian city of Odesa for a regional summit on Wednesday, the first time the Moscow-friendly leader has visited the country during his 12 years in power.

Trump has generally veered away from overtly criticizing Putin while openly berating Ukraine's leader Volodymyr Zelensky, but has repeatedly condemned Russia's lethal airstrikes and floated that the Kremlin could be "tapping us along."

Photos shared with the Kyiv Independent show the newly installed blue-and-yellow street sign, reflecting both the correct Ukrainian transliteration and the national colors of Ukraine.

Ukraine has brought home the bodies of 1,212 soldiers killed in the war with Russia, the Kyiv officials responsible for exchanging prisoners of war said on Wednesday. In Moscow, Kremlin aide Vladimir Medinsky said Ukraine for its part had returned 27 bodies of Russian soldiers.

Kyiv residents described Tuesday as one of the loudest nights in a monthslong campaign by Russia, which has intensified despite pressure to work toward a ceasefire.