Ukrainian troops are slowing down their advance in Russia’s Kursk province. The first week was crucial, according to kyiv, as its soldiers advanced nearly 30 kilometers into the invading country. On August 8 alone, Ukrainian progress was 10 kilometers, according to data from the American think tank Institute for the Study of War (ISW). But in the last 40 hours, Ukrainian regiments have advanced no more than four kilometers in the face of growing Russian military reinforcements, according to Ukrainian army spokesmen and independent war analysis groups confirmed on Wednesday.
SuspilneUkrainian state media reported on Wednesday, citing high-ranking sources, that the Kursk offensive had slowed down due to the arrival of new Russian military units protecting the provincial capital. The Ukrainian surprise operation across the border, launched on August 6, achieved rapid successes with veteran military units facing inexperienced Russian recruits. The total number of Ukrainian soldiers involved in the offensive may reach 15,000, Carnegie Endowment expert Michael Kofman has estimated.
The Kiev army does not provide specific figures, but the lowest estimates point to no fewer than 6,000 Ukrainian soldiers on Russian territory. Russian prisoners of war number in the hundreds, according to the country headed by Volodymyr Zelensky. The Ukrainian special forces group Alpha said on Thursday that it had captured 102 enemy soldiers in the last few hours alone.
The Ukrainian presidency and government are now working to consolidate a kind of civil and military administration in the Russian territories under their control. Zelensky announced on Wednesday that a special protection zone has been created in the territories under his control to protect the local population with humanitarian aid, allow it to leave the region for other parts of Russia or Ukraine, and also to provide access to international organizations, such as the United Nations or the Red Cross.
Evacuations continue
Following the evacuations of the past few days, Russia announced on Thursday that it had displaced thousands of citizens from regions bordering the invaded country. The Ukrainian high command estimates that 120,000 Russian citizens have left the area under its control. Russian authorities put the number of evacuees at 200,000 people.
Knowing what’s happening outside means understanding what’s going to happen inside, so don’t miss anything.
KEEP READING
Zelensky also said that the possibility of establishing a dedicated Ukrainian military command in the Kursk region is being discussed. kyiv’s goal, a Foreign Ministry spokesman explained on Tuesday, is to temporarily maintain the Ukrainian military presence on Russian territory until the Kremlin “agrees to negotiate a fair peace.”
The Ukrainian Armed Forces have also been able to seize abandoned Russian armored vehicles and weapons, as was the case during the successful counteroffensives of 2022 that allowed kyiv’s troops to push back the invader in the north of the country, in Kharkiv and Kherson.
The ISW has also noted that the performance of Ukrainian armored and assault companies has been slowed down by Russian reinforcements. According to Ukrainian officials on the Donetsk front, these new additions from the invader are not coming from the war fronts where Kiev is seeking to slow down the Kremlin offensive, namely in the Donetsk province.
Ukrainian positions in Kursk, as well as their rearguard in the Ukrainian province of Sumi, are being hit particularly hard by Russian air strikes, Morning Express has been able to confirm.
The Ukrainian strategy is now focused on securing its positions on conquered Russian soil. Means such as the Ukrainian Suspilne, NVor the American ForbesUkrainian officials have published statements confirming that they are digging defensive lines in the more than 1,000 square kilometres occupied, while the Russian authorities reduce the figure by half. The main objective is to secure control of the industrial zone of Sudzha. Conquering this town, located seven kilometres from the border, has been the main victory of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Near Sudzha there is a gas plant that is key for Gazprom’s export of this fuel to Europe. Ukraine announced that it had taken control of the facility. Satellite images do confirm that the infrastructure has been damaged.
Despite the slower Ukrainian advance, the Kremlin is not completely confident, and proof of this is that satellite images published by Censor Netand CNN have shown that the Russian army is digging trenches 60 kilometers from the border with Ukraine.
Follow all the international information atFacebook andXor inour weekly newsletter.
