Ukrainian Forces capture 909 Russian troops in strategic Kursk offensive
Over the past six months, Ukrainian Armed Forces have captured 909 Russian soldiers in Russia's Kursk region, significantly enhancing their prisoner exchange leverage, according to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Facebook. This effort has allowed the return of numerous Ukrainian defenders from Russian prisons.
The General Staff recalled that the Kursk operation initiated on August 6, 2024, aimed at preventing new Russian military advances into the Sumy and Kharkiv regions. Over six months of intense combat in the Kursk region, Russian casualties have reached approximately 39,900, with about 16,100 killed.
Additionally, large quantities of Russian military equipment have been destroyed in the region, including 131 tanks, 689 armored vehicles, 386 artillery systems, 12 MLRS units, 12 air defense systems, one airplane, three helicopters, and 931 drones.
North Korean casualties in the Kursk region amount to about 4,000 personnel. The Ukrainian offensive forced Russian forces to divert significant resources to the Kursk region, weakening their positions on other fronts, according to Ukrainian command. Consequently, Russia requested assistance from North Korea, which, as reported by Ukrainian officials, deployed 12,000 troops to the Kursk region. North Korean losses totaled around 4,000, essentially eliminating one of three brigades and rendering the other two ineffective. The North Korean units have since been withdrawn from the front line.
The Kursk Offensive operation stands as a prime example of unexpected, asymmetrical, and successful actions by Ukraine's Defense Forces, enabling them to inflict significant losses on a superior adversary and seize battlefield initiative. [source](https://www.dw.com/ru/vojna-v-ukraine/t-17457611) As of February 6, Ukrainian forces maintain control over hundreds of square kilometers of a "buffer zone" within Russia.