MOSCOW—On Wednesday, Russia declared that it was engaged in fierce combat with Ukrainian forces that had made one of the biggest incursions into its territory since the start of the conflict in Ukraine in February 2022, into the Kursk area of the country.
According to Sergei Shoigu, the director of Russia's security council, Russia has progressed this year as Ukraine's 2023 counteroffensive failed to produce any significant advances. Since June 14, Russian soldiers have seized 420 square kilometers (162 square miles) of land from Ukrainian forces.
Russia's defense ministry claimed that Ukraine retaliated on Tuesday and that fighting carried on into Wednesday night as Ukrainian soldiers advanced 530 kilometers (330 miles) southwest of Moscow, to the northwest of the border town of Sudzha.
According to the ministry of defense, fighting Ukrainian forces is still going on "in the areas of the Kursk region directly adjacent to the Russian-Ukrainian border."
“Air strikes, missile forces, artillery fire and active actions of units covering the State border of the grouping of troops in the Kursk direction prevented the enemy from advancing deep into the territory of the Russian Federation.”
The statement stated that although the conflict was still going on, 50 armored vehicles had already been destroyed in the region, including seven tanks, eight armored personnel carriers, three infantry fighting vehicles, and 31 armored combat vehicles.
The final operational transshipment location for Russian gas shipments across Ukraine to Europe is Sudzha. The Kursk nuclear power plant in Russia is only 60 kilometers northeast.
Ukraine has been silent about the happenings. To strengthen its defenses, Russia dispatched reserves.
At this critical point in the war, when Ukraine is losing ground, the fighting near Sudzha take place.
The window for peace was closing, according to Shoigu's remarks on Tuesday, and the longer it took Kyiv to start discussing conditions, the more expensive peace would be for the Ukrainian people.
Russian military bloggers reported intense battles.
“The fighting will be fierce,” said Yuri Podolyaka, an influential Ukrainian born pro-Russian military blogger. “It’s definitely not going to end quickly.”
“Even if the enemy fails to break through (and no one will give guarantees for now), there will be artillery attacks and drone attacks. And in large numbers,” said Podolyaka.
Alexei Smirnov, the acting governor of the Kursk region, said there had been rocket and drone attacks overnight, and told civilians to take cover away from windows
“Due to the situation in the border areas of the region, medical institutions are replenishing the supply of donated blood,” Smirnov said, adding that there would be a mobile blood donation point set up in Kursk, the site of the world’s largest ever land battle during World War Two.
According to Smirnov, a doctor was injured and the driver and paramedic were killed when a Ukrainian attack drone struck an ambulance outside of the town.
A major monastery outside of Sudzha's cathedral and other structures were set on fire by Ukrainian shelling, according to a senior Orthodox cleric, although no one was harmed.
This year, forces fighting on behalf of Ukraine that identified as volunteer paramilitaries entered portions of the Kursk and Belgorod regions, which led to a significant Russian military operation to establish a buffer zone in the northeast of the country.
