Kursk events are not as important for Russian as offensive in Donbas - NYT
Kursk region sign (Getty Images)
For Russia, the operation by Ukrainian forces in the Kursk region holds less significance than the advancement of Russian troops in Donbas. Western experts say that despite its overwhelming firepower, Russia cannot push Ukrainian forces off its territory, citing The New York Times.
Western officials and military experts attribute Russia's failures in the Kursk direction to both a lack of personnel and insufficient intelligence. Moscow's priorities also played a role in this.
It is said that Russia's primary goal remains the capture of the key Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk in the Donetsk region. It is an important logistics hub, and Russian forces are making maximum efforts to seize it, even at the cost of weakening their positions on other fronts, particularly in the Kursk region.
Colonel Markus Reisner from the Austrian military academy noted that any weakening of Russian forces on the Donetsk front could jeopardize their plans to continue the offensive in the Ukrainian region.
The NYT explains that while Moscow focuses on the offensive in the Donetsk region, Russian forces in the Kursk region have been unable to respond to the Ukrainian operation due to a lack of experience and resources. It is noted that Western intelligence helped the Ukrainians precisely plan their operations, and Russian forces could not organize an effective defense.
Journalists say that the redeployment of Russian troops to the Kursk direction is happening slowly. They also noted that by conducting airstrikes on Ukraine, Russia is trying to divert its citizens' attention from its failures in the Kursk region.
In the region, Russia is deploying mainly its reserve units and troops from sections of the Russian-Ukrainian front in the south and north, which are not involved in the fighting on the Pokrovsk front.
According to American officials, Moscow needs at least 50,000 of its troops to attempt to push Ukrainian forces from the Kursk direction.
Situation in Kursk region
The Ukrainian operation in the Kursk region began on August 6 and is still ongoing. Ukrainian forces have managed to take control of about 100 Russian settlements during this time.
During a press conference at the "Ukraine 2024. Independence" forum, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that the Kursk operation prevented the Russians from launching an offensive on the border areas of the Sumy and Chernihiv regions.
It is currently known that IAEA head Rafael Grossi visited the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant. The International Institute for Strategic Studies warns that the Russians tried to use this visit for propaganda purposes, presenting Ukraine as a threat to nuclear safety.
More details on the Kursk operation can be found in RBC-Ukraine's report.
