Agencies MOSCOW/KYIV

Russia said on Friday that  it was battling a new Ukrainian offensive in Kursk even as Kyiv offered a humanitarian corridor for civilians in the Russian region it has invaded and partly occupied.  Russian President Vladimir Putin admitted the situation there was “very difficult” as he met with regional governors.

There was no comment on the fresh offensive from officials in Kyiv, and Russian statements on the extent of any fighting could not be verified. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Thursday praised his troops for the Kursk offensive and  said, “The Kursk operation clearly explains the meaning of the principle of ‘peace through strength’.”

Zelenskyy’s office accused Moscow of “indifference” to the fate of its own citizens. “We are ready to open a humanitarian corridor from the Kursk region to the depths of Russia in response to an official request of the Russian Federation. Apparently, the Russians do not want such a humanitarian corridor, because we have not received a corresponding request from them.” The Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov claimed Russia was doing “everything” it could for Russian civilians in Kursk; however Moscow refused to comment publicly on the idea of a humanitarian corridor.