Russian forces struggle to halt Ukrainian advance in Kursk region
According to Ivan Stupak, the Russian Army has already attempted to dislodge Ukrainian defenders from the Russian region, but without success. Several Russian so-called "military correspondents" claim that the situation is unlikely to change anytime soon.
The Ukrainian Armed Forces (AFU) operation in the Kursk region has been ongoing for nearly a month and a half. During this period, Russia has made a single attempt to halt it, which ended in failure. Military expert and former SBU officer Ivan Stupak shared his insights on how the opponent might proceed during an interview on Radio NV.
Stupak pointed out that the initial attempt by Russian Armed Forces to repel the Ukrainian advance did not succeed significantly, although analysts from DeepState acknowledged limited successes for the opponent near the town of Snagost. The Ukrainian side currently controls approximately 800 square kilometers directly within the Russian region, with an additional 300 square kilometers under indirect control.
There are three primary axes in the Kursk region where Defense Forces are trying to advance and link up with the main forces:
"We hope to capture additional prisoners, which would contribute to our exchange pool. We're also positioning ourselves to access the substantial amount of equipment and ammunition that Russia has in the area, which is critical for our operations," said Ivan Stupak.
The analyst further discussed whether the Russians could eventually repel the Ukrainian offensive and halt the operation. As of now, there's no clear information on whether the Russian forces are depleted or have enough strength to counter-attack in the near term.
"However, Russian 'military correspondents' note (this could be disinformation) that they lack the forces to repel the Ukrainian advance in the Kursk region. This information is for informational purposes only and not a cause for premature celebration. The situation can still change," summarized Ivan Stupak.
It's worth noting this follows reports from September 17 that former Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, opposed the breakthrough into the Kursk region. Ukrainian commanders reportedly had no plans to extend their offensive into the Kursk area, suggesting the situation resembled a "high-risk gamble," causing discord among the commanders.