Ukraine and the US are to hold crunch peace talks in Saudi Arabia from tomorrow following a tense few weeks in which relations between Kyiv and Washington looked more fraught than ever, US officials have said they are planning on using the meeting with their Ukrainian counterparts to determine whether Kyiv is willing to make material concessions

Ukraine's situation in Russia's Kursk region has deteriorated sharply in the last three days, the same maps show, after Russian forces retook territory as part of a gathering counteroffensive that has nearly cut the Ukrainian force in two.