KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia struck civilian areas of Ukraine with drones in another deadly nighttime attack, officials said Tuesday, as Kyiv officials dismissed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s declaration of a unilateral 72-hour ceasefire next week as an attempt “to deceive the United States.”

President Trump "wants to see a permanent ceasefire first, to stop the killing, stop the bloodshed," press secretary Karoline Leavitt said.

Russian troops are trying to carve out a buffer zone in Ukraine's northeastern Sumy region, although so far without substantial success, the regional governor said on Tuesday.

Russia acknowledged for the first time that North Korean troops were on the front lines of its war with Ukraine, with a senior military official crediting their role in helping Russian forces reclaim control of the Kursk region.

The admission is a sign of the deepening military alliance and mutual defense pact between Pyongyang and Moscow.