Expanding gray zone: How events may develop in Russia's Kursk region
Photo: Kursk region has become a large gray zone (Vitalii Nosach, RBC-Ukraine)
The Ukrainian Armed Forces are expanding the zone of conflict in the Kursk region, forcing the enemy to redeploy troops. Russian territory has turned into a gray zone where positional battles are constantly taking place, according to the RBC-Ukraine article “Vuhledar and Pokrovsk under onslaught and Russia's goals before the cold: Frontline overview”.
Even though there have been no confirmed changes in the monitoring maps in recent days, there is no reason to expect stabilizing the contact line in the Kursk region.
“It cannot stabilize, because there is no such front as in our east, where we are fighting positional defensive battles. The situation in Kursk is completely different,” said expert and reserve major of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksii Hetman.
Ukrainian troops are constantly moving, and with a small number of their forces, they are forced to hold off a large number of Russian forces that Moscow cannot use in Ukraine.
“Therefore, by and large, the entire Kursk region, at least up to the Seim River, can be considered a gray zone. Because it is not known how many Ukrainian troops are there. There are maneuvering operations going on there, and it can be very loosely compared to a guerrilla war. I think that this situation will continue, and we will expand our zone of influence,” the expert added.
Ukraine's operation in Kursk region
The Armed Forces of Ukraine launched an operation in the Kursk region on August 6. Within a month they took control of 1,300 square kilometers and 100 settlements. About 600 Russian soldiers were captured.
According to documents seized by Ukrainian special forces at their positions, the Russian military command had anticipated the Ukrainian offensive in the Kursk region and had been developing plans to prevent it for several months. But failed to prepare.
Russia launched a counteroffensive in the Kursk region on September 11, which cannot be considered a success.
