Russia said on Sunday that Ukraine had launched a “counterattack” in the western border region of Kursk, where kyiv’s forces began a shock ground offensive last August.
It was not immediately clear how much Ukraine had advanced in the region, but pro-Kremlin military bloggers previously reported that a powerful new offensive was underway.
“At around nine in the morning Moscow time, to stop the advance of Russian troops in the direction of Kursk, the enemy launched a counterattack,” the Russian Defense Ministry said.
Ukraine used two tanks, a dozen armored vehicles and a demolition unit in the new assault, which was heading towards the village of Berdin, about 15 kilometers northeast of Sudzha, the ministry said.
“The operation to destroy the formations of the Ukrainian army continues.” Sudzha was captured by kyiv forces shortly after they launched their offensive in August 2024, and they have held on to it ever since.
Ukrainian officials offered limited information about the offensive. “Russia is getting what it deserves,” said Ukrainian presidential cabinet chief Andriy Yermak.
The head of Ukraine’s Center for Combating Disinformation, Andriy Kovalenko, said on Telegram that “defense forces are working” in the area. “In the Kursk region, the Russians are very worried because they were attacked from several directions and it was a surprise for them,” he said.
Pro-Kremlin military bloggers admitted that the Russian army was under pressure in the Kursk region.
“The main events of the Ukrainian army’s next attempted offensive are clearly still ahead of us,” said influential pro-Russian blogger Rybar.
north korean troops
kyiv seized dozens of villages in the Kursk region shortly after its incursion began on August 6, 2024, but its advances stalled after Moscow sent reinforcements to the area, including thousands of troops from its ally Pyongyang.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said late Saturday that “up to a battalion of North Korean infantrymen and Russian airborne troops” had been lost in battles in the Kursk region that day and the day before.
kyiv’s apparent new offensive comes at a critical moment in the nearly three-year conflict, as US President-elect Donald Trump, who has promised a quick ceasefire, prepares to take office on January 20.
Current President Joe Biden’s administration has unveiled nearly $6 billion in military and budget aid to Ukraine ahead of the Republican’s inauguration.
Both Russia and Ukraine have exchanged regular attacks since the start of the year. Russia said Sunday it shot down dozens of Ukrainian drones overnight in a strike that damaged homes and triggered air alerts, while kyiv said Moscow fired 103 drones into its territory.
Four Russian airports briefly suspended traffic early Sunday for “security” reasons, forcing at least eight planes to divert their course, a spokesman for Russian civil aviation authority Rosaviatsia said.
