Ukraine's Kursk offensive in Russia continues, Kiev and Moscow compete to claim success – Firstpost

Ukraine's military offensive in Russia's Kursk region intensified on Thursday (August 15), with both Kyiv and Moscow claiming rival victories in what is the largest foreign attack on Russian soil since World War II.

Ukraine claimed to have taken control of 1,150 square kilometers of territory, including the town of Sudzha, just eight kilometers from the Russian border.

Territorial gains by Ukraine

According to top military commander Oleksandr Syrsky, Ukrainian forces currently control 82 settlements in the region. President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed the “completion of the liberation” of Sudzha, marking an important milestone in Ukraine's ongoing counteroffensive.

The Ukrainian offensive began on August 6, after more than two years of suffering from the Russian invasion that devastated much of eastern Ukraine.

Ukrainian government officials described the campaign as an act of self-defense. Military experts suggested the move could be aimed at relieving pressure on the eastern front, particularly in the contested Donbass region.

Ukraine's offensive appeared to have taken Russian forces by surprise, leading to hasty defensive measures in the border regions.

How Russia reacted

Russia, meanwhile, responded by announcing that it had recaptured the village of Krupets in the Kursk region. The Moscow Defense Ministry claimed that Russian forces had “completed the destruction of the enemy and restored control over the settlement.”

In addition, Russia has reportedly begun deploying “additional forces” to the neighboring Belgorod region to counter the Ukrainian advance and secure its borders.

The human toll of the offensive

In Sumy, a regional centre near the border, emotional scenes unfolded as mourners gathered to honour six Ukrainian soldiers killed in the offensive. Air raid sirens echoed through the town as a funeral mass was held in a local Orthodox church. “It is hard to say goodbye to them because we want them to live forever, to live among us as honoured sons of their homeland,” the presiding priest told the assembled families and friends.

On the Russian side of the border, the human cost of the conflict is becoming increasingly apparent. In Kursk, around 500 evacuees from the contested areas lined up to receive food and clothing distributed by the Russian Red Cross.

According to Russian authorities, more than 120,000 people have been displaced by the fighting. “I was very scared, very scared. Shells were flying from all sides,” said Nina Golinyaeva, an evacuee from Sudzha, describing the chaotic scene before her evacuation.

The intensity of the fighting has resulted in civilian casualties on both sides. Russian authorities reported that at least 12 civilians have been killed and 121 injured since the offensive began. Moscow has not released the number of casualties since Monday (August 12) as reinforcements continue to be sent to the front.

With contributions from AFP