Operation in Kursk Oblast prevents Russia's attempts to occupy Sumy, Zelensky says
Ukraine's operation in Russia's Kursk Oblast has helped prevent the occupation of Sumy Oblast and its regional center, the city of Sumy, President Volodymyr Zelensky said at a press conference on Aug. 24.
Ukraine started its incursion into Russia's Kursk Oblast on Aug. 6. As of Aug. 20, the Ukrainian military said it controlled 1,263 square kilometers (488 square miles) and 93 settlements, including the town of Sudzha.
Kursk Oblast borders Ukraine's northeastern Sumy Oblast, an area subjected to daily Russian attacks since parts of it were liberated in April 2022.
Zelensky positively assessed the operation's progress in Kursk Oblast, adding: "The operation is complex, it is important that it is going according to our plan."
The president said that he could not disclose all the goals and results of the operation, but one of them was to replenish stocks of Russiam prisoners of war who can be exchanged for Ukrainian POWs in Russia.
"The exchange fund is being replenished, which is positive," Zelensky said.
"Secondly, we have stopped a Russian operation in the north (of Ukraine), (we have done) a preventive strike, and we have accomplished this task. We have prevented the encirclement of part of Sumy Oblast," he added.
The Kyiv IndependentZelensky expressed hope that all the operation's goals in the Kursk Oblast would be achieved. The president added that one of them was to show "who Russian President Vladimir Putin really was."
"(Our goal is) to show their (Russia's) society what is more precious to him (Putin): the occupation of Ukraine's territory or the protection of Russian population. And I am very pleased that everything I told our partners about has now been demonstrated in practice," Zelensky said.
"He (Putin) is still thinking about how to keep the occupied territories and does not think about how to protect his people. He is now bombing his villages. His people there are shocked that they believed in this demon."
On Aug. 21, Ukraine's General Staff said that Russian aircraft dropped 27 guided aerial bombs on Ukrainian-controlled settlements in Kursk Oblast.
Russia has also continued to shell border communities in Ukraine's Sumy Oblast, including the villages of Porozok and Poznia. Ukrainian authorities are planning to evacuate a total of 45,000 residents from the region amid intensified Russian attacks.
Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said on Aug. 14 that Ukraine’s military is creating a "security zone" on Russian territory to protect Ukrainian border areas.
Vereshchuk said that Ukraine would be conducting humanitarian operations in the area, including creating safe corridors for civilians to evacuate — both toward Ukraine and to other parts of Russia.
Chris York
