According to a pro-Kremlin blogger, Russian operatives walked about 9 miles inside the pipeline that Moscow had until recently used to send gas to Europe.

President Vladimir Putin donned military fatigues for a surprise visit to troops in Russia's western Kursk region on Wednesday where he ordered them to press their lightning advance and swiftly retake the rest of the area from Ukrainian forces.

The bulk of Ukrainian forces, including some of Kyiv’s most battle-hardened brigades, have likely withdrawn from Russia’s Kursk region, relocating back into Ukrainian territory, military correspondent David Axe wrote for Forbes on March 11.