The Russian Defense Ministry claimed on Aug. 8 that its forces continue to engage Ukrainian troops in the Sudzhansky and Korenevsky border districts of Kursk Oblast.
Ukrainian forces crossed the border into Kursk Oblast on Aug. 6, resulting in clashes on Russian soil that were described by Russian President Vladimir Putin as "a large-scale provocation."
Kyiv has largely refused to comment on the operation in Kursk Oblast, which takes place just as Russia is ramping up attacks in Ukraine's Donetsk Oblast.
Russia's Defense Ministry also claimed that "the enemy has been prevented from advancing," echoing Valery Gerasimov, the Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces.
One day earlier, Gerasimov reported to Putin that the Ukrainian military's advance deep into Kursk Oblast had been stopped.
In turn, Russian Telegram channels claimed that fighting had already begun in Sudzha, a town of around 5,000 people located less than 10 kilometers (6 miles) from the border with Ukraine.
Geolocation footage indicates that Ukrainian troops have advanced up to 10 kilometers (6 miles) deep into Russia's Kursk Oblast, passing at least two Russian defense lines and a stronghold, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said in its Aug. 7 assessment.
Kursk Oblast lies on the border with Ukraine's Sumy Oblast, which has been experiencing daily attacks since Russian troops were pushed out of the oblast and back across the border in April 2022.
The Russian region has a population of around 1 million people, 440,000 of whom live in the city of Kursk, the region's administrative center.
Francis Farrell
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