Ukraine on Friday swiftly denied U.S. President Donald Trump's claim that thousands of its soldiers were encircled in Kursk and left vulnerable.
Trump wrote on social media that "thousands of Ukrainian troops are completely surrounded by the Russian military and in a very bad and vulnerable position," urging Russian President Putin to spare their lives.
In response, Putin acknowledged Trump's appeal and accused the Ukrainian troops of committing multiple crimes against civilians in Kursk.
If the Ukrainian forces surrender, their lives will be guaranteed and they will be treated in accordance with international laws and Russian federal regulations, said Putin, adding that Ukrainian leaders must order their troops to lay down arms and surrender, so as to implement Trump's request.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine dismissed the reports of encirclement as fabricated misinformation by Russia, aiming at exerting political pressure on Ukraine and its allies.
The situation in Kursk had not significantly changed in the past day, and Ukrainian forces regrouped and retreated to more advantageous positions, with no threat of encirclement, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said in a statement on the day.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the mission of Ukrainian troops in Kursk was to divert Russian forces from other directions, and that their goals in the region were successfully achieved.
Ukraine rejects Trump's claim of troops encircled by Russian Forces
Spring farming, aided by modern agricultural technologies, is picking up pace across China.
In Yulin City, located in southern China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, rice seedlings are waiting to be transplanted. To expedite the planting process, local farmers have adopted modern and efficient agricultural machines to boost productivity.
"Currently, there are over 9,000 mu (about 600 hectares) of well-grown rice seedlings, with around 10,000 mu (about 666.67 hectares) of orders yet to be cultivated. The entire process of seedling cultivation is expected to run until the end of March, and the transplanting of rice seedlings will likely be completed around mid-April," said Zheng Zhiwen, head of an agricultural company.
This year, Yulin plans to transplant over 1.72 million mu (about 114,600 hectares) of early-season rice. As of now, it has deployed over 120,000 sets of agricultural machinery to support early rice production. They have already completed planting on over 54,000 hectares of early-season rice, and are expected to finish all early rice transplanting by early April.
Elsewhere, Xiapu County of east China's Fujian Province is accelerating seedling cultivation operations through automatic seeding machine and smart workshops.
"From seedling cultivation and transplanting to drone-assisted crop protection and harvesting, we have basically achieved full mechanization throughout the entire process," said Sun Chaozhi, head of a seedling cultivation center.
Local farmers are employing rotary tillers enhanced with the homegrown Beidou navigation system to plow the soil in preparations for transplanting.
In north China's Guangping County, Hebei Province, local farmers are benefiting from the Yellow River water diversion project, making full use of this resource to irrigate and nourish their wheat fields.
In Xiantao City, located in central China's Hubei Province, the local power department has dispatched electricians to the fields to carry out thorough inspections of irrigation facilities, ensuring readiness for spring plowing by swiftly detecting and mitigating potential risks.
Spring farming aided by modern technologies pick up pace across China
