As voters in the U.S. head to the polls in presidential elections set to decisively steer the trajectory of Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine, the situation on the battlefield is beginning to unravel for Kyiv. After two years of brutal attritional warfare across southern and eastern Ukraine, dynamism
"Russia thinks they are very strong, but if we wanted to seize their nuclear power plant, we would have done it, we could have done it, but we never wanted to do it," President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
Key developments on Oct. 21: * US announces $400 million defense aid package for Ukraine * Russia detains 18 North Korean soldiers who left positions in Kursk Oblast, source says * Kremlin calls North Korean troops reports 'contradictory' but stops short of denial * Russia attacking toward town near Pokrovsk, National Guard says * Ukraine
Ukraine's military intelligence head Kyrylo Budanov said the first group of 2,600 soldiers will be deployed to Russia's Kursk Oblast, where Ukraine began a cross-border incision in August and still holds significant swathes of territory.
Key developments on Oct. 14: * Russian Tu-134 transport aircraft set ablaze over 1,000 km from Ukraine, military intelligence claims * Russia claims capture of Zaporizhzhia Oblast village, Kyiv says 'situation dynamic' * Over 110,000 residents of Kursk Oblast evacuated, Russia's chief ombudsman claims * First Ukrainian troops crossed into Kursk Oblast
Speaking to the Kremlin-controlled outlet Argumenty i Fakty, the official said that this number includes 12,328 people placed at temporary facilities across Russia and around 100,000 living with relatives and friends.
The Kyiv Independent’s Anna Belokur explains the top stories of the week, from the postponement of the Ramstein summit to the two-month anniversary of Ukraine’s surprise incursion into Kursk Oblast.
A Ukrainian official commented that the "Russian plan in Kursk Oblast has been thwarted so far" as Russian forces suffered losses.
"We know about roughly 50,000 soldiers from other sectors who were transferred to the Kursk direction," Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said in a documentary aired on national television.
The reliable flow of supplies into the region and Russia's focus on eastern Ukraine will allow Kyiv to hold territory in Kursk Oblast for months to come, senior U.S. officials said.
Ever since Ukraine launched a lightning incursion deep into Russia territory in early August, Yan, a local resident in the city of Kursk, has been volunteering at a local drop-off point, helping to distribute clothes and bedding. "The number of people arriving at the humanitarian aid points every week is
President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the Kursk operation has made one of the most significant contributions to Ukraine's exchange fund, aiding the release of Ukrainians from captivity.
Key developments on Oct. 4: * Oil depots on fire in Russia's Voronezh Oblast, Perm Krai * Russian forces less than 7 km away from Pokrovsk, authorities say * At least 177 Ukrainian POWs have died in Russian captivity, Kyiv says * EU readies to sanction Iran over missile shipments to Russia, Bloomberg reports
During the visit, President Volodymyr Zelensky also met with the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief to discuss protecting infrastructure, Ukraine's energy sector, and air defenses.
"The local population doesn't understand why they are being hit (by Russian forces) because the (Ukrainian) military is not even nearby," Vadym Mysnyk, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian military's Operational Tactical Group Siversk, said.
As President Volodymyr Zelensky kicked off a visit to the U.S. this week in a bid to secure more firepower for his army, Ukrainian soldiers on the ground monitored the news with half-hearted hope, questioning whether Kyiv’s top Western ally would provide enough to help them defeat Russia.
"I'm not saying it's a resounding success or will bring about the end of the war or the end of (Russian President Vladimir) Putin. What it has done is show our partners what we're capable of," President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
A majority of those surveyed (53%) also said it was more important for Russia to oust Ukrainian forces from Kursk Oblast than to occupy more territory in eastern Ukraine.
Key developments on Sept. 20: * Russian commanders warned of plans for Ukraine's Kursk incursion months in advance, seized documents show * Ghanaian men lured to fight for Russia appeal for help from inside occupied Ukraine * First group of Ukrainian pilots complete French jet training * Ukraine's strike on Russian arms depot destroyed
While the earlier warnings were largely vague, they grew increasingly more detailed — including specific threats that Ukraine would try to seize the town of Sudzha — a warning that was realized after Ukraine captured it in August.
Key developments on Sept. 19: * Russian attack on retirement home in Sumy kills at least 1, injures 14 * Russia redeploys 40,000 troops to Kursk Oblast as Kyiv's incursion continues, Zelensky says * European Parliament backs Ukrainian strikes inside Russia, Taurus missiles delivery * Russia mining dams in Belgorod Oblast, Ukraine's military
"(Russia) tried to attack from the flanks, but they were stopped there," spokesperson Oleksii Dmytrashkivskyi told AFP.
Vadym Mysnyk, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian military's Operational Tactical Group Siversk, said that the attacks would have continued even if Ukraine had not advanced in the Kursk sector of the front line.
"In the Kursk direction, the Russians have started their rapid offensive, and they want to use about 60,000-70,000 people there. We know about 40,000 people who are there," Zelensky said.
Key developments on Sept. 12: * Russia claims to have recaptured 10 settlements in Kursk Oblast amid ongoing counterattack * Russia pushing toward Kurakhove in Donetsk Oblast from several vectors * Ukraine downs Russian Su-30 aircraft above Black Sea, military intelligence claims * Zelensky urges the West to allow long-range strikes without distance limits
More than a month after Ukraine launched an unprecedented incursion into Russian territory, Russian forces have begun counterattacking in Kursk Oblast, aiming to eventually drive Ukrainian troops out of the partially occupied border region. President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed reports about the Kursk counteroffensive at a press conference on Sept. 12,
Amid speculation that the Kremlin is considering a new mobilization of conscripts, some potential draftees say they are not enthusiastic about defending Russian territory just over a month after the Ukrainian incursion into Kursk Oblast. "I won't go (to the front). I swore an oath to the Constitution, not to
At least 20 House Democrats and five House Republicans are calling on President Joe Biden to lift restrictions on Kyiv’s use of American long-range weapons to strike deep inside Russia, according to a letter sent to the president on Sept. 10 obtained and seen by the Kyiv Independent.
Ukraine’s incursion into Russia’s Kursk Oblast has rattled Russia’s elite but Russian President Vladimir Putin still has a tight grip on the country, said CIA Director William Burns at the Financial Times’ Weekend festival in London on Sept. 7.
At an undisclosed detention facility, the Kyiv Independent interviewed one contract soldier captured in Kursk Oblast. To convey a better idea of what the thoughts and motivations of the average Russian soldier are in 2024, we are publishing this interview in full.
Ukraine’s bold incursion into Russia’s Kursk Oblast gives the country a much-needed breakthrough on the battlefield, and represents yet another setback for the Kremlin. Yet the operation is not a military game-changer. Even as Ukrainian forces have occupied more than 400 square miles (over 1,000 square kilometers)
Russia has pulled over 60,000 troops to Kursk Oblast to face Ukraine's ongoing incursion as of early September, President Volodymyr Zelensky said in an interview with NBC News published on Sept. 3.
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