- Russia reports ongoing fighting in Kursk region
Russian forces continue to fight against an advance by Ukrainian troops in the Kursk region, according to the Russian Ministry of Defense in Moscow. The authorities have upgraded the existing state of emergency in the Russian border region with Ukraine to a national emergency.
Ukrainian attempts to push deep into the Kursk region were repelled with aircraft and artillery, the Moscow military report said. Since the start of the Ukrainian attack on Tuesday, Kyiv's troops have lost up to 945 soldiers and 102 units of armored equipment, including 12 tanks. Western military equipment was also mentioned. Five Stryker armored fighting vehicles of US origin were reportedly destroyed.
No mention was made of German equipment in the bulletin. The Russian military figures are not verifiable by independent sources. According to the ministry, there were fighting in several settlements in the Kursk region, including in the western part of the city of Sudja. In just 24 hours, Ukrainian forces lost 280 personnel and 27 units of equipment. There were no official reports of Russian losses, but military bloggers confirmed the deaths of many soldiers.
Ministry: Destruction of Ukrainian troops will continue
According to the ministry, the neighboring Ukrainian region of Sumy also received air and rocket strikes. "The operation to destroy the Ukrainian Armed Forces' groupings will continue," the agency said.
In Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in response to the advance in the Kursk region that Russia would now feel the war itself. Kyiv has not yet provided details of the attack. Ukraine has been defending itself against Russia's invasion for nearly two and a half years, and has repeatedly attacked the neighboring country with drones and missiles as part of its defensive campaign. A large-scale ground operation by regular troops, as is currently the case in Kursk, is happening for the first time.
The escalating conflict in the Kursk region has raised concerns of a potential widening of the war beyond the border regions. The ongoing hostilities between Russian and Ukrainian forces have resulted in significant losses on both sides, with Russia now facing the brunt of the war's impact within its own territory.
