Russia redeploys troops to defend Kursk: How it will impact situation on front

Contents

• What is known about the redeployment of Russian troops to the Kursk region
• How the redeployment of Russian troops could impact the front

What is known about the redeployment of Russian troops to the Kursk region

According to reports from Russian media and Telegram channels, the Russian army has begun redeploying units to the Kursk region from Belgorod and Donetsk regions. Russian state agencies have published videos showing a column of Russian military equipment moving toward the Sudzha district, where fighting has been ongoing for several days.

One of the Russian military correspondents noted that the column entering from the Belgorod region included makeshift fire support vehicles based on the MT-LB, as well as 152-mm Msta-S howitzers. Additionally, the Russian Piatnashka brigade, which had previously been involved in battles near Chasiv Yar in the Donetsk region, has reported its arrival in the Kursk region.

According to Russian media, there were other military convoys transferred to the Kursk region to "contain" the so-called breakthrough in the Sudzha area. However, not all of them managed to reach their destination.

This morning, a video of a destroyed convoy in the Rylsk area appeared on Russian Telegram channels. This convoy primarily consisted of trucks transporting soldiers. The footage showed many dead Russians and burnt-out vehicles.

According to unofficial estimates, this strike may have cost the Russian army nearly an entire battalion. Some Russian war correspondents have already called it the biggest loss since the start of the invasion of Ukraine.

Ukrainian observers also report on the redeployment of Russian troops. According to the Telegram channel Nikolaevsky Vanyok, the Russian army has withdrawn reserves that were undergoing recovery from the Kupiansk direction. Military analyst Oleksandr Musiienko noted that the enemy has decided not to deploy reserves in the New York-Toretsk direction and is preparing to transfer them to the Kursk region.

How the redeployment of Russian troops could impact the front

As Oleksandr Musiienko explained in a comment to RBC-Ukraine, the fact that Russia has begun transferring troops to the Kursk region from other directions is both obvious and entirely predictable. In his view, this was one of the objectives of the breakthrough in the Kursk region.

"From the perspective of Ukraine's defense in the East, the strategy of diverting Russian reserves to the Kursk region is working, and it is evident that this should reduce the pressure on our forces in the Donetsk region. This is a very positive development," he said.

According to the analyst, due to this redeployment of Russian troops to the Kursk region, the pressure exerted by the Russian army on certain fronts could weaken, leading to fewer attacks and offensives by the enemy.

"This, in turn, aids our defense directly on the front lines. It accelerates the halt of Russian offensive operations in the East. It should hasten the depletion and exhaustion of Russian units, bringing us closer to the point where they lose the capability for offensive action," Musiyenko explained.

Despite the clearly challenging situation for the Russian army in the Kursk region, Russian leadership continues to claim that they are in control of the situation. However, the Russian Ministry of Defense and General Staff have become so entangled in their lies that, according to their statements, one could conclude that Ukrainian forces should no longer be present in the Kursk region at all.

Even Russian media have noted that within three days of the breakthrough, the Russian authorities have claimed "victory" in the Kursk region at least six times. Meanwhile, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov tried to calm the Russians with a promise of "good results in 2-3 days."

"These statements are made to try to demonstrate some confidence that everything will be fine. Especially since no other expectations can be anticipated in their statements right now. The situation is such that our forces are fortifying, in addition to advancing and expanding the foothold. So 2-3 days is a very bold statement," commented Musienko on the Russian representatives' statements.

He also recalled a recent Bloomberg material about Russian Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov knowing about the preparation for an attack on the Kursk region but ignoring it. In Musienko's view, this could indicate two things.

"It means either he did it deliberately because he is tired of watching the Russian army lose combat capability completely under Putin's orders, or he is simply afraid to report bad results to Putin," he said.

Sources: material from Russian media and comments from military analyst and head of the Center for Military-Legal Studies Oleksandr Musiienko.

It should be noted that the first reports of a border breach in the Kursk region began to arrive on August 6. However, despite the active response from Russia, the Ukrainian side has not officially commented on the events in the Russian region.

Unofficially, Russian authorities may have lost control over hundreds of square kilometers in the Kursk region, including the city of Sudzha.

Today, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a meeting of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief’s Staff, where he received a report from Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi about defensive actions in areas from which Russia had launched strikes against Ukraine.

The Ukrainian president also mentioned three productive days in replenishing the exchange fund. However, it is not specified whether this is related to the events in the Kursk region.