Russia is “gradually pushing out” the Ukrainian army from the Kursk region, simultaneously intensifying attacks in the Donbass, the head of the Kremlin announced about a month after the Ukrainian armed forces invaded Russian territory.
“The enemy’s goal was to irritate us and force us to move troops from one area to another. The armed forces of Ukraine hoped to stop the attack in Donbass, but the enemy failed,” President Vladimir Putin said.
According to Putin, not only has the Russian army not retreated in Donbas, but with its advance it threatens to destroy the Ukrainian front and neutralize the combat capability of the Ukrainian army.
Kyiv confirms that the situation in Donbass is indeed still tense. According to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the hottest battles are in the directions of Kurakhovoye and Pokrovskoye.
Forbes wrote earlier that the Ukrainian units in this area may be under siege.
Battles are still ongoing on the territory of Russia
Despite the assurances of the Russian president that the situation in the Kursk region is stabilizing, a statement that official Moscow has been making since the invasion of the Ukrainian troops, the fighting continues in the territory of Russia and it is not clear how much the number of Ukrainian troops in Kursk has been reduced and from which territories. were pushed out.
It is known that the Ukrainian side captured more territory in the bordering Russian region in 30 days than the Russians in the same period in the direction of Donetsk.
At the same time, in the context of the events in Kursk, Moscow’s concerns were exacerbated by one of the largest Russian energy facilities in the region, the Kurchatov nuclear power plant, which is located only 40 kilometers from the city of Kursk, on the banks of the Seym River. Moscow continuously claims that Kiev regularly targets the site of the nuclear power plant, but the Ukrainian side categorically denies it, stating that it has no intention of seizing the structure.
Today, the head of the Kremlin voiced the same accusations and directly threatened. – “One can only imagine what will happen to this part of Europe if we react in a mirror manner.”
Until then, the Russian side has already used the deadliest weapons in its arsenal, striking Ukrainian settlements. in memory of the victims of Russian aggression in Poltava it is a three-day mourning.
Two days ago, the ballistic missiles fired by the Russian forces killed more than five dozen people, it was reported about 300 wounded.
The head of the Kremlin speaks of peace
In parallel with the bloody strikes of the Russian military in recent days, the head of the Kremlin speaks of peace, assuring that Moscow is ready for peace negotiations, with the agenda of the Istanbul negotiations.
In this negotiation format initiated by the Turkish side in 2022, the Russian envoys’ agenda did not include the demand for the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from the four regions of Ukraine: Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhia. That precondition was presented later, in April of this year, becoming one of Moscow’s number one preconditions for the cessation of hostilities.
Russian political and expert circles have not yet commented on Putin’s new proposal, and it is not known whether the Ukrainian army, which was established on Russian territory a month ago, forced Moscow to reconsider its territorial claims against the neighboring country.
Kiev, in turn, hints at the desire for dialogue, announcing that intend to invite Russia to the second peace summit.
At the previous meeting held in June, in which representatives of eight dozen countries of the world participated, the Ukrainian side rejected the idea of inviting the Russians, insisting that first a “peace formula” should be found in Ukraine, which would be based on the ideas of Kiev, after which the participants of the meeting would start applying pressure. on Moscow to accept the terms.
In an interview with NBC News, President Zelensky announced that Kiev is preparing a detailed plan for the end of the war with its partners.
