War, Russia’s counteroffensive in Kursk to expel the Ukrainians. Zelensky’s reaction

Russia has regained control of a dozen towns that had been occupied by Kiev forces in the Kursk region after the incursion began on August 6, the commander of the Chechen Akhmat force, Apti Alaudinov, announced. Moscow forces launched the attack from the west, from the town of Snagost, about 30 kilometers west of Suzhda and 10 kilometers north of the border. The 155th Marine Brigade was to take part.

“The Russians have launched a counteroffensive” in the Kursk region, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky admitted, assuring during a press conference in Kiev that this response from Moscow “is consistent with the Ukrainian plan”, without providing further details. The Russian Defense Ministry, meanwhile, announced that in two days it had recaptured 10 villages in the Kursk region that were in Ukrainian hands. At the end of August, Kiev claimed to control almost 1,300 square kilometers of Russian territory after the attack launched on August 6.

The latest bulletin from the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW) was dedicated to the case. According to analysts, the Russian army is trying to isolate Ukrainian troops stationed in the Russian Kursk region, and then launch a major offensive to try to expel all Ukrainian forces. “Russian forces launched counterattacks along the western axis of the Ukrainian salient in the Kursk region and captured several towns northeast and south of Korenevo between 10 and 11 September,” the ISW bulletin reads. According to the American think tank, Ukraine is counterattacking in some of these areas to push back Russian forces. The same source also noted the Russian advance towards the city of Snagost, which could complicate the logistics of supplying Ukrainian troops. However, the think tank warns that it is too early to determine the size and scope of the Russian offensives over the past two days.