Ukrainian Forces make inroads in Russia's Kursk region, Biden weighs in amid strategic shifts
For the past eight days, Ukrainian units have been advancing in Russia's Kursk region. Ukrainian sources report that Kyiv has mobilized thousands of troops for the operation, with a notable amount of armored vehicles deployed in the area, far exceeding what has been seen in other parts of the conflict.
Today, it was revealed that the Ukrainian Armed Forces have taken control of three new villages in the Kursk region: Olgovka, Malaya Loknya, and Kruglenkoye. Russian propagandists are lamenting a "very difficult situation." The enemy currently holds the initiative and, albeit slowly, is increasing its presence in the Kursk region, writes the Russian military outlet “the World Today with Yutruy Podolyaka”. Photos of Ukrainian soldiers in the settlement of Plekho, Kursk region, are circulating online.
A Ukrainian film crew from the "1+1" television channel showed footage from Sudzha. According to the journalists, the city has not suffered significant damage. There are some damages from aerial bombs, dropped by the Russians themselves.
The report showed Ukrainian soldiers removing a Russian flag from an administrative building in Sudzha. Online sources have identified the footage as being filmed at a boarding school on Lenin Street, 7, in the city center. Burned Russian equipment can also be seen at the outskirts of the city, as claimed.
Meanwhile, today, the commander of the Chechen "Akhmat" unit, Apti Alaudinov, reported that the Ukrainian Armed Forces do not currently control Sudzha.
Against the backdrop of the Ukrainian operation in the Kursk region, Russia has begun withdrawing some of its units from Ukraine.
Russia has redeployed some of its units from the Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions in southern Ukraine, assured Dmitry Likhovoy, the spokesperson for the "Tavria" operational-strategic grouping, noting that it involves a relatively small number of units.
For the first time, U.S. President Joe Biden has commented on the Ukrainian advances into Russian territory. He stated that the breakthrough creates a "real dilemma for Putin" and poses a "predicament."
"We are in direct and constant contact with the Ukrainians. That's all I will say while the situation is in an active phase," noted the American president.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Oleksandr Syrskyi have reported that 74 Russian settlements are under Ukrainian control. Based on the recent developments, this number appears to have increased.