Russia reports to take a city in eastern Ukraine in fighting in Kursk

Russia reports to take a city in eastern Ukraine in fighting in Kursk

Russia claimed that his troops have conquered a heavily battered but strategically important city in the Ukrainian region of Donetsk, one day after Kiev started a counterattack in the Russian area of ​​Kursk.

The conquest of Kurakhove

After months of intensive fights, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced on Monday that his troops had "completely freed" Kurakhove. This small industrial city is an important outpost to the key town of Pokrovsk and is a central point on the far -reaching front lines in the south. An official statement from Kyiv on this claim is still pending.

Ukrainian offensive in Kursk

Kiev renewed his offensive in Kursk, where Ukrainian troops hold terrain after a surprising advance last summer. Over the weekend, Ukrainian forces have attacked several locations in Kursk, with a high -ranking civil servant expressed that Russia "gets what it deserves".

intensification of the fights on the front

Despite the exhaustion of both sides after almost three years of war, the fight on the front has intensified in the past few weeks. Since Donald Trump returns to the White House this month and promises to end the war in one day without calling details, Moscow and Kiev seem to try to conquer territories and strengthen their negotiating positions from upcoming peace talks.

strategic importance of Kurakhove

Kurakhove has been heavily attacked in the past few weeks, while Russian troops are concentrating on Pokrovsk, an important logistical center, the loss of which would significantly impair the ability of Ukraine to keep areas in Donetsk. Kurakhove is about 40 kilometers south of Pokrovsk and is the youngest city that is claimed by Russia.

reports and assessments from Ukraine

The Ukrainian “Khortytsia” team explained that their strength tries back on Russia's attempts to play their numerical superiority and to develop an offensive. Russian troops fight partly in the city. CNN has not yet been able to verify the claims independently.

Ukrainian military bloggers report differently about the progress of Russia and the success of the Ukrainian defense strategy. A blogger, Yuriy Butusov, said that Kurakhove was "practically lost", despite the "heroic" efforts of the Ukrainian troops. He mentioned that the armed forces still defend important industrial areas, including the local heating power plant.

The challenges of defense

Russian state media reported that the Ukrainian troops were “pushed back from parts of the power plant”, citing sources in Russian security structures, but the fights were still underway. "A lot of work in the industrial area is still ahead of us," the sources were quoted.

Butusov questioned the wisdom of the Ukrainian military command to defend Kurakhove and warned that this could imitate "the same pattern" as in Soledar, Bakhmut, Avdiivka and Vuhledar - cities in Eastern Ukraine, which finally fell on both sides after weeks or months of resistance to the Russian "rushing", with enormous losses created.

heroism and resistance of the Ukrainian armed forces

Another blogger, Bohdan Miroshnikov, praised the Ukrainian troops for the "miracles" that they would have done in Kurakhove. "It costs us a lot, but it prevents the enemy from creating even more unrest," said the blogger.

counterattacks and strategic importance of the Kursk advance

In the meantime, Ukraine is falling back in Kursk, despite the efforts of Russian and recently used North Korean troops to push the Ukrainian units back across the border. Moscow and the allies of Ukraine surprised the Course Ansis, the first ground invasion by Russia since World War II, when it started. Ukraine's troops quickly moved up, although Russia finally began to push his powers back; The line of control has not changed dramatically in recent months.

Explanation of President Zelensky

In his daily speech on Monday, President Wolodymyr Selenskyj said that the Ukrainian troops maintained a "buffer zone" in the Russian area. "Since the beginning of the Kursk operation, the enemy has lost over 38,000 soldiers in this area, including around 15,000 irreparable losses," he said. He emphasized that the Course advance was important to prevent Russia from being redirecting other regions in East and South Ukraine.