Ukraine’s military continues its significant offensive within Russian territory, with reports indicating control over 74 villages in the Kursk region.
The Ukrainian forces are also carrying out concentrated artillery attacks on the neighboring Belgorod region, prompting the local governor to declare a state of emergency.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described the ongoing battles in the Kursk region as “intense and fierce.”
The offensive, which began on August 6, marks the largest incursion by a foreign army into Russian soil since World War II.
Zelensky announced that Ukrainian forces now control 74 villages in the area, where they are conducting searches and stabilization operations. He also mentioned that hundreds of Russian soldiers have been captured.
Ukraine’s military commander, Oleksandr Syrskyi, reported that Ukrainian forces advanced between one and three kilometers in certain areas, securing an additional 40 square kilometers of territory.
Meanwhile, Russian forces claimed to have repelled further Ukrainian attacks in the Kursk region, bolstering their defenses and inflicting losses on the Ukrainian troops.
In response to the escalating situation, Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov declared a state of emergency, citing the “extremely difficult” conditions in the border region due to ongoing Ukrainian shelling.
He reported significant destruction of homes and casualties among civilians. Gladkov also mentioned drone attacks on the villages of Shebekino and Ustinovka, adding that Russian air defenses had intercepted several drones overnight in the Kursk, Voronezh, and Bryansk regions.
Voronezh Governor Alexander Gusev confirmed that Ukraine launched over 35 drones targeting the region, which lies several hundred kilometers south of Moscow. Despite the scale of the attacks, no casualties were reported.
Since the launch of the offensive on August 6, Ukraine has claimed control over more than 1,000 square kilometers of Russian territory in the Kursk region.
Russian authorities acknowledged on Monday that Ukrainian forces had penetrated at least 12 kilometers deep and 40 kilometers wide, capturing 28 towns.
An analysis by Agence France-Presse, based on data from the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War and Russian sources, revealed that Ukrainian forces have seized at least 800 square kilometers of Russian territory as of Monday.
This marks a significant development in the ongoing conflict, which began with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Since the start of the conflict, Russia has taken control of regions in southern and eastern Ukraine, while Ukrainian cities have been subjected to a barrage of missile and drone strikes.
According to AFP analysis, Russian forces have captured 1,360 square kilometers of Ukrainian territory since February 1, 2024.
